A Sleepy Town called TARDIS
by sassywriterchick
Summary: Amy knows. She knows they don't belong here, in this stupid little town. No one else knows. They don't remember the TARDIS, they don't remember anything but their fake lives. Amy has several goals, make someone remember, figure out where they are, and stop the Doctor and Clara from falling in love. So far she's failing in all three. (ElevenxClara)
1. The Wifi Man

**New story! :) I really like this one.**

**I'll try to update once a week (at least) but no promises.**

**In case anyone is confused, Elijah Smith is the Eleventh Doctor and John Smith is the tenth doctor.**

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><p>Clara watched in vague disappointment as the class bell rang, and all of her students practically leapt from his or her seats and raced out the door, the most action she'd seen from anyone today. Was her class really that boring? She was a little put out as she made her way home, and plopped down into her desk chair, her lips puffing out in exasperation as she tried to get her laptop to connect to the internet, once again.<p>

It wasn't working.

She fingered the number Rose had given her when she had told her that her Internet wasn't functioning properly, contemplating whether or not she should call. It could really help her with her wifi issues, on the bright side, but it could also cost her some money that she really couldn't afford to spend right now. With her and Rose sharing the mortgage it was still just enough to pay all the bills.

Thinking fast, she dialed the number on her phone, and brought it to her ear, biting her lip.

"Hello, this is TARDIS computer issues how may I help you?" A loud enthusiastic voice practically shouted from the other end.

"Um…I can't find the internet." She said rather lamely, staring helplessly at her computer, her brow furrowed. All she wanted to do was check her damn email...

"Well, I'm just the man who can help you! Technically my name is Elijah Smith, but call me Eleven."

"Um…Okay." Clara said, and bit her lip. This man on the other end was weird, that was for sure. "Just tell me what to do."

"Have you clicked on the internet button?"

"Ummmmm…." That seemed like all she could say, and she clicked on the button. "Yeah, it's giving me options."

"Click on one you know!" she could hear a low rumbling in the background., "Go away Donna," she heard the man mutter, "Who cares if this isn't actually my job? I can do this. I'm brilliant at this job."

"Okay." Clara said into the phone, drawing the man's attention back to her, "I clicked it."

"Is the password typed in?"

"One sec." she said, and began to click in the numbers, using her trick for remembering the code. "Run. You. Clever. Boy. And. Remember. 123." She frowned down at her screen, "Still not working!" she protested into the phone.

"This sounds like a mobile job! Tell me your name and address." A bit confused, Clara told him, and he said he would be right there.

She put down her phone, wondering if it was a smart idea to allow a complete stranger access to her house. She supposed TARDIS was a rather small town, and not much could happen anyways.

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><p>Rose Tyler plopped the last stack of clothes on the correct rack and sighed, her bangs flying in front of her face with her exhale. She just wanted this day to be over with, but her boss said she couldn't leave until the protesters dressed as plastic mannequins outside left.<p>

"Why aren't we able to leave?" a man nervously asked her, and she shook her head, shrugging her shoulders.

"Some protest thing. The only thing that happens here in Tardis." Rose sighed dramatically, "You don't look like you're from around here? New in town?"

"Yes actually. Moved here with my idiot of a brother." The man sighed, "Can't get rid of him. John Smith by the way." He stuck out his hand, and Rose shook it, grinning up at the unfamiliar man.

"Rose Tyler." She shook his hand; she rather liked his sticky up brown hair. "So what brings you here?"

"Trying to find a sensible gift for a secretary that my brother just rather annoyed by stealing her client."

"Inner work rivalry?" Rose suggested, watching the doors, and wondering if she could get past the rebels if she ran.

"Sort of. Except he doesn't actually work there. Do you think we could make it if we ran?"

"I have no idea." She answered truthfully, who knew with the protests these days. John Smith grinned down at her, than took her hand, a gesture she wasn't entirely familiar with.

"Run." He whispered, and she laughed as he pulled her out the door, earning scathing looks from her manager as she broke his precious rules.

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><p><strong>Twelve years earlier<strong>

Elijah Smith winced as his ball flew right over the fence into the neighbors yard, effectively out of his Grandma's territory. He looked nervously around him, he was alone, no rude twin brother to ruin his fun. He nervously adjusted his bowtie (a girl in the park had told him it was cool) and took a few uneasy steps towards the opposite fence. Surely it wouldn't hurt if he quickly scaled the fence, retrieved his ball and flew back at the speed of light.

He quickly gripped the fence planks and pulled himself over, before thumping on the ground in a heap. He sat up straight, he would need to be careful from now on, as he was in enemy territory.

His eyes searched hopelessly for his precious ball, it was the only one his Mom would buy him, as she thought playing with toys was nonsense.

"Why are you in my backyard?" A small scottish voice asked from behind him, and he whirled around, he was caught! A little girl, probably his age stood in front of him, still in her nightie.

"Um... I...ball." he muttered, and raised his hands in the air like he was a convict.

"Are you a police man?" the girl asked, and he shook his head.

"I will be though. I'll be the bestest police man ever!" the little giggled.

"Here's your ball." she said, and tossed him the blue ball. "It hit my window."

"I'm sorry." he said nervously, but she shrugged it off.

"Oh well, my Aunt isn't home anyways." the girl stuck out her hand in friendship, "Amelia Pond."

"Elijah Smith!" he shook her hand, grinning. She was the first girl he'd met that didn't spit in his hair, or boss him around like his older sister Sarah Jane.

"Are we best friends Elijah?"

"We are bestest friends now Miss Amelia." he pronounced, and she smiled up at him.

"ELIJAH!" his Mother screamed from behind him, and he turned white.

"I'll be back, in five minutes!" he promises, before sprinting back to his Grandma's house.

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><p><strong>Present Time<strong>

Elijah Smith raced away from the TARDIS computer issues building, rather scared of the fiery ginger lady named Donna who had chased him out with a broom when he offered to go down to Miss Clara Oswin Oswald's flat himself.

He was still planning on making the house call, he had promised after all. A promise was a promise! He found the correct apartment building, which wasn't to hard, TARDIS really was a rather small town.

He was rather pleased that his older sister Sarah Jane had instructed John to take Elijah (or Eleven as he liked to be called) with him when he moved away from London and back to this quaint little village. He didn't want to be left behind, and besides, his Mum had told John to look after his brother, a strict instruction while she had been on her deathbed.

They called him insane, which he found rather rude. Just because he didn't actually have a job, and liked to dream more than live in the real world with every single other boring human being out there, didn't make him lack in the saneness department.

He kept telling his brother he was a writer, an author who had yet to be discovered at the young age of 25, and his brilliance probably wouldn't be discovered until after he died, like Vincent Van Gogh, his favorite painter.

Still, he hesitated pressing the call button to the apartment. This woman had sounded different, almost like his brother, not stuck in the lives of boring people at all, the only people who seemed to get his eccentric ways.

He pressed the button.

"Hello?" her bubbly voice crackled through the speaker, and he adjusted his bowtie, for the 5th time since standing on this step.

"Hello! It's the man from the...phone." he finished lamely.

"Oh, okay!" she responded, "I'll be right down." he stepped away from the speaker, his hands nervously fiddling with his jacket at his side. He really hoped John didn't show up now, Donna would surely have called him, and he didn't want his brother to drag him away now.

She stepped at the top of the stairs leading to the apartment, and his mouth fell open.

She was the most beautiful creature he could ever have dreamed up. Her dark hair fell flawlessly to her shoulders, it's rich color setting off her pale skin perfectly. Her chocolate brown eyes peered up at him, her pink lips pulled into a friendly smile. She was wearing a maroon dress that fell to her dress, and dark tights tucked into boots.

"Hi..." he stammered, "Um... I'm here to help with your wifi..."

"Well, duh, that was why I called you-" she stepped forward, but her foot caught on the edge of the steps and she went down, falling down the stairs.

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><p>Rose and John Smith collapsed against the side wall of the store, laughing hysterically. Rose grinned up at the tall, gravity defying haired man.<p>

"That was fun." Rose gasped, out of breath from running through the shoving protesters. "I don't even know why they're protesting about now." she shook her head lightly, and released his hand from her grip.

"Do they protest a lot?"

"A bit, yeah." Rose shook her head, exasperated. "I don't know why, it's not like we have a lot of problems here in TARDIS. Usually it's about the mayor, Harold Saxon."

"Well, I sure hope not, as I'm a Doctor and rather like my days off." Rose chuckled at that, but then blushed. She hoped he hadn't gotten the wrong idea and thought she was one of those richer girls from up North.

"I just work back in that shop." she gestured weakly back at the department store, "But I resigned today. I got offered a job at the hospital being a secretary for..." she frowned, "John Smith."

"Brilliant! I wasn't sure whether they'd get me one of not." Rose looked a little uncomfortable now, as she realised she had just met her new boss on accident.

"Well it's nice to meet you I guess." she said, but grinned up at him still anyways.

"Nice to meet you Rose Tyler." she liked the way he said her name, like it was something special. "Now..." he said, as the protesters rounded the corner, angry that they didn't get to bombard the pair with flyers. "Run for your life!"

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><p>Elijah was panicked as Clara tumbled down the stairs, cracking her head against the railing. He luckily caught her before she could cause further damage to herself, but she was still knocked cold. He quickly picked her up, if he was the one who brought her to the hospital, they might think it was him who knocked her out. People tended to think those things when he was involved, for whatever reason.<p>

She had left the door open, and he quickly carried her through it, leading her up into the apartment number she had listed to him over the phone.

He found a room that he assumed to be hers, it was neat and tidy, the blue covers smoothed on the bed, pictures of Clara and a blonde woman covered the walls, and everything was very clean, unlike the other room he had passed, which was painted in various shades of pink and was rather messy. He liked a clean woman, unlike his brother John.

He set her down lightly, smoothing her hair back, he knew enough medical to know she wasn't hurt badly, just a minor goose egg maybe. He couldn't help looking around her room, picking up a book that was well worn, but seemed in good enough condition. 101 places to see.

On the inside cover was Clara's name, and her ages leading up to twenty four. Worrying that she might be hungry when she woke up, he rummaged through their cupboards until he found a small box of jam cookies. He dumped the contents onto a plate, and took a bite of just one cookie, before placing it back on the plate.

With that he took his leave, worried that she might find alarm if a strange man was in her bedroom, but he sat on her front step, so he could help her with her wifi when she woke.

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><p>Amelia Pond uneasily scanned her email, wondering if her reputation as a kissogram was getting to large. Maybe she was to good of a kisser. Deleting several emails, she sighed as she picked up a note that had been stuck in her pocket at her last party.<p>

You would make a great model for the store! Call me at 801-555-4525

She hadn't told Rory about it yet, and wondered if she should before calling the man. He was her soon to be spouse after all, shouldn't he have a say? She honestly didn't know. Biting her lip, she glanced out her window for a brief second, and noticed a man sitting on a step in front of the apartment where Rose and Clara lived.

Frowning slightly, she noticed the way he kept glancing up at their window, as if he were... well stalking one of her lovely friends. Maybe she was just jumping to conclusions, but she really needed some fun in her life right now. Grinning to herself, she held up her police outfit, the kissogram was back at work.

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><p>John Smith strolled confidently into his job, and was informed that his new secretary would arrive tomorrow, not that he didn't already know that. He threw on his coat, and grinned at his former secretary, who glared back at him, as she packed up her stuff. It wasn't his fault that she chose to make out with one of the younger Doctor's in restricted areas.<p>

TARDIS wasn't a very big town, and he was one of the three classified Doctor's in the area, along with about five nurses. Luckily not many accidents happened either, the perfect life for John, who had always dreamed of the small town where his Grandma had lived.

Today was supposed to be just a paperwork day, his fifth day here, but you never knew when someone would show up in the emergency part of the hospital, or call for an ambulance.

"Doctor Smith?" a young nurse, Rory his name was, asked him. "We have a call from your brother waiting at the desk." John sighed, and gestured for Rory to come closer.

"Can you take that call for me?" he asked, "I have some medical students that want to meet me."

"Um... Okay."

It wasn't a lie, a group of them stood huddled in the main operating room (which was hardly ever used in this town) their nervous eyes flickering between him and Rory as Rory scampered away.

"Alright then." John grinned at the new students, "What's your name?" he asked the only woman who looked extremely confident and sure.

"Martha Jones." she replied.

He was about to ask her a complicated medical question, trying to see if the confidence in her eyes was noteworthy, when a woman barged in through the doors, an angry look on her face and a broom in her hand.

"OI! You! Your brother Elijah Smith?" she barked, and John looked alarmed.

"Um... What?" he asked, "What?" he repeated again.

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><p>And that was how he came to be running the streets of TARDIS, his hand entwined with his new secretary Rose. They stopped again, when the avid protesters stopped following them.<p>

"Some people say that the mayor hires them."

"Hires who?"

"The protesters. So something actually happens. They never get arrested, even though they break the law constantly." Rose spoke softly now, suddenly shy of her new boss.

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><p><em>"Do you think they know?" she asked the scientist.<em>

_"They can't." he said, looking over the array of healthy minds before him. "They're fully locked in the computer simulation. They think that this is their lives."_

_"They don't remember the real world?" she asked, stopping in front of the blonde woman. She was twitching slightly in her sleep, as of she wanted to wake up._

_"Not at all. He doesn't even know that he's an alien. We won't be expecting any more trouble from the Doctor, tell them." the woman nodded, but before she left the room, she glanced over her shoulder._

_"Why are we taking them again?"_

_"The Doctor poses a threat to all of us. But, we do not believe in the violence of the Silence. We have chosen to make him comfortable, with all of his friends trapped in the same world. After all, every lonely monsters needs a companion."_

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><p><strong>Please review! I love you all! :)<strong>


	2. 101 Places to See

**Please review:)**

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><p>Amy straightened her police cap and put in a brief commanding step in her walk. This was going to be fun. Rory or Clara would probably scold her for her brief moment of childish fun, but Amy didn't care. She was her own person, and sometimes she could be a rebel. At least, that's what Rose and her pretended when they went and got drunk, and ending up jumping in the lake in their underwear.<p>

"Excuse me," she said in a commanding voice, "Are you aware that you're trespassing on private property?" she stomped her heels importantly on the ground. The man sitting in front of their apartment dropped whatever he was holding in his hands, before scrambling to pick it up.

"What? I was just- I was just- waiting for- pretty girl- Clara!" he stammered, gesturing wildly towards the apartment, and nearly tripping over his own feet standing still.

"Why don't you tell me your name sir?" Amy abruptly said, she liked this officer business, maybe she should rethink her choice of career.

"Um...Elijah Smith." Amy stiffened. Elijah Smith? The boy who promised to be her best friend, than left her in the dust, never to return and leading her aunt, and many people, to believe she had made up the strange boy who fell out of the sky? She had blabbed about her 'best friend' for weeks.

"Elijah Smith?" she asked, her tone flat, "The one who promised Amelia Pond to be her best friend?"

"Um... I suppose-" he began, but she grabbed a fallen cricket bat from the road (some stupid kid had left it around) and whacked him over the head with it.

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><p>Clara Oswald groaned as she woke up. The last thing she remembered was falling... She wasn't falling now, that was for sure. She sat up, rubbing her head softly, before looking around her room. How did she get in her room?<p>

A plate of cookies was on her bedside table, one half bitten. She picked it up, Rose hadn't put it there, she would have eaten the whole cookie. She threw back her covers, and kicked off her boots before jogging to her window, needing some fresh air. Shouldn't she be on the pavement or in a hospital?

The answer to how she got to her bed was chained to the bicycle rack outside her apartment, and she had to stifle a laugh at the sight of the wifi man slumped against it, looking utterly dejected. Elijah Smith, she remembered. Amy was pacing the street in front of him, swinging a cricket bat in between her fingers, and looking like she was about to breath fire on the wifi man, or chin boy. He did have a rather large chin.

She quickly scampered downstairs, not bothering to shove her boots back on, and grabbed Amy's arm, stopping her from whacking Chin Boy over the head again which she looked like she was going to.

"Amy! Amy! Walk it off." she snapped, Amy really did look like she was going to punch someone now. She stomped away, and Clara stepped in front of Chin Boy again, her arms folded across her chest.

"So Chin Boy, what did you do to offend my Scottish friend?" she asked

"I said I would be her best friend... Apparently." he rubbed his head, "She does have one hell of a swing." Clara's mouth opened in a slight O, before she closed it, and looked at him in disbelief, her eyebrows set in a line of disapproval.

"You're the Police man boy?" she flicked him in the forehead. "They kept telling her that you weren't real. Nobody would talk to her for weeks! Except me and Rose." he stammered.

"I was just a little boy- I didn't- I didn't know." he said, and tried to stand, but his handcuffs yanked him back down, rubbing against his wrist uncomfortably.

"Okay." she said, and he could see the surprised look in his eyes. Clara didn't like to dwell on that time of her life, it was also when her Mom died and Rose's Mum lost her job. The reason the three of them, (her, Amelia, and Rose) had become such good friends was precisely because they didn't fit in anywhere else. Didn't quite fit with the other kids at school. "Why are you here?" when he continued to fidget, she put her hands on her hips. "Were you protecting me?"

"Maybe." he murmured uncomfortably. "But you were passed out, and I didn't know how to lock your door and-" Clara cut him off.

"Milk or sugar?"

"Wait- What?"

"Well, you will have to tell me a little bit more about yourself. So might as well add tea." Clara pulled a hairpin from her pocket and picked the lock, freeing him. "Follow me."

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><p>Rose looked shyly from John Smith to the ground. "Well," she said, "I guess I'll see you tomorrow. Don't you have to get back to work?"<p>

"I took the rest of the day off to shop for a present for Miss Donna Noble." his lips formed that woman's name like it was a delicate object. "My brother has highly offended her by taking her customer." he sighed. "My brother has a habit of doing that."

"Taking peoples customers?"

"Offending people."

Rose laughed, and John watched her as she did so.

This strange pink and yellow being was quite beautiful, he had to admit. She had lovely blonde hair that fell to her shoulders, big hazel eyes that seemed to shine like a million stars, and a very...very nice curvy body. Her tongue stuck out slightly in between her teeth, a spot of pink against the white.

"Well, Smith, how long have you been in town?" she asked, and then stared at the ground as if she was afraid of him.

"A little over a week. Haven't been working in the hospital very long." he sighed, "Seems like no one in this town actually gets hurt though, so I'm lucky in that sense." Rose laughed again.

"We get our big injuries from time to time, but yeah, it's mostly pretty quiet." Rose sighed, and leaned her head against the wall. "I told myself I would leave this town a long time ago, but never got around to it."

"It's got its perks, besides, now you work with me." he exaggerated the last word and she laughed again. He really did like her laugh. It was so light, so full of carefree happiness.

"Yeah, I suppose I work for you now." she sighed, "Good thing to, that shop was a hellhole."

"Yeah, all those perfume smells and dark rooms." he wrinkled his nose, "I'll just get her something else, like a cookie. Or a banana. Banana's are good." Rose grinned.

"Well... good luck with that. I know Donna, and she'd probably only be happy with a diamond ring."

"I'm not getting engaged to her!" he protested, and she shook her head, overcome with the giggles.

"I didn't mean that way. She's already engaged, all I'm saying is she's a hard woman to please." He smiled. "Well," she said, "Best be going." she turned and headed down the opposite way she'd come, "See you tomorrow!" she waved at him.

John Smith leaned against the side of the department store building and exhaled, letting his eyes slide shut in exasperation. He didn't want to give Rose the wrong idea, he'd promised his brother before hand that they would not date any woman, not after what happened with River... and the library.

He at least owed Elijah that he supposed. He wasn't interested in dating Rose, he just wanted to get to know her a little better.

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><p>Elijah Smith sat uncomfortably in his bar stool chair, watching anxiously as Clara prepared their tea, her mouth chattering all the while, but he wasn't really paying attention.<p>

"Why the book?" he finally asked once she'd stopped for air, and she turned an accusatory glance at him, she knew what book he was talking about.

"What book?" she asked suspiciously, handing him his tea and propping herself on the counter, her legs swinging over the edge and her brown eyes focused on him. He spoke up before he lost his nerve.

"101 Places to See?" Her facial expression changed, she looked more tense, but her eyes were more open, her fingers tracing the veins in the fake marble countertop.

"What about it?" she carefully asked, but he could see that this small book meant a lot to her, in some way.

"Were you going to see those places?" his voice was just as careful, just as calm, but his hands were twitching nervously in his lap. This was the longest conversation he had ever had with a girl since River.

"Were?" she asked, jumping lightly off the counter, seeming more relaxed at his choice of question. "I'm still going. But you had a look in my room did you?"

"I was... you fell-"

"Right." she smiled at him, and then, before he could embarrass himself further, he heard the door swing open.

"Oi! Clara!" a voice called, and a blonde woman stepped into the kitchen. "I quit!" Clara turned away from him, and towards the sound of the voice, and threw her arms around the newcomer.

"Yes!" she cried, and the two women embraced for a moment or two before pulling apart. Only then did her eyes fall on Elijah.

"Brought a friend home I see." she nodded, smiling. "Rose Tyler." she stuck out her hand, and he awkwardly shook it, domestics had never been his strong point.

"Elijah Smith."

"He's new in town." Clara said, cupping her tea cup between her hands and blowing on the hot liquid.

"You wouldn't happen to be that brother of John Smith's would you?" Rose asked, and when he nodded, she grinned. "He's my new boss." she explained, "Met him on my last day!"

"So... today?" Clara clarified, and Rose nodded. Elijah took this as his cue to leave, and stood up, nearly knocking over his tea.

"I best be going now." he said, and was surprised when he felt Clara's arm on his.

"Wait Chin Boy." she said, and rummaged around in some drawers before pulling out a pad of paper and plopping in front of him. "Phone number. Who knows when I might have wifi issues?" he nervously jotted down his number, and practically bolted out the door. Woman were scary.

"You scared him away." Rose accused her, but Clara just shrugged.

"Oh well." she sighed.

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><p>That night however, instead of sleeping, she leafed through her book, making sure that Chin Boy's clumsiness hadn't disrupted any of her things.<p>

When everything seemed to be in order, she put the book back on her nightside table and switched off her light, but her mind was still awake, demanding her full attention.

Chin Boy's image was frozen behind her eyelids, with his awkward smile, and big chin. Her eyes flew open, and she mentally chided herself for daydreaming such things. She didn't do love. Plus, she'd only met the boy! She didn't believe in love, and she certainly believe in love at first sight.

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><p>Elijah Smith's mind was awake as well, wondering if she could call first, or if he should. His brother had told him to make friends, and he'd just made one... he thought. Or maybe she really just wanted his computer skills, maybe he was being stupid.<p>

Of course he was being stupid, of course! He didn't do love, didn't believe in such nonsense, especially love at first sight.


	3. A Moonlight Machine

**Thank you to everyone who has followed this story.**

**This is more of a filler chapter, I have much more exciting plans for the next one, but still, I feel like I'm overly pleased with this chapter. *blushes* any who, and whouffle or ****ten petals requests I'd be happy to fulfill (no pregnancies though lol) **

**Mwa.**

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><p>It had been over a week since Clara had last talked to Elijah Smith, and the fact that she had given him her number at all had slipped her mind. It was only at night did her mind ever cross towards the mysterious chin boy, and that was normally because Rose had been talking about her new boss, who happened to be Elijah's criticised brother.<p>

She had much more important things to worry about though, like grading papers and actually succeeding in her job of educating kids. That was why she had thrown herself completely into her work, only ever talking to Rose or Amy. She hadn't ever been faced with an unfamiliar boy who seemed to like her.

But when her phone rang it's normal Harry Potter theme trill, she picked it up, expecting it to be Rose asking for milk or something. She didn't have many friends, and they usually texted, not called. When they were little girls, Rory's Mum used to tell them the stories of people trapped in the messaging on mobile phones, screaming out for help. That was why Rose and her swore to only call, not text.

It was a stupid habit, but it meant something to them, so they kept doing it. Interactions were better.

"Oswin here!" she bounced a little in her chair. When they were little, and Amy made them play 'Raggedy Man', Clara had refused to play the hero, the Doctor, and decided to be the super hacker named Oswin. Ever since then , Amy, Rory, and Rose all called her Oswin. She didn't object, it made her feel more at home.

"Oh, I must have gotten the wrong number. I was looking for Clara-" Chin Boy's voice crackled through, and Clara froze for a split second.

"Oh! Elijah!" she said, "No, no this is Clara." she responded, and sat back down in her desk chair, when she realised she had stood straight up at the sound of his voice. "Sorry, force of habit."

"Okay," he responded awkwardly, "Anyway, Clara, my Brother is having some people over for dinner... and he told me to invite some friends, but you seem to be the only person who doesn't hate me."

"I'm sure that's not true." she assured him, "but I'd love to. What time should I be there?"

"Um... Around seven would be fine." he said, and she quickly said goodbye and hanged the phone up. Clara bit her lip, and wondered to herself whether this was betraying Amy. The poor girls childhood was practically ruined by this little boy. Still though... He was Elijah Smith, the boy who had strutted into her life.

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><p>John vaguely wondered whether his brother would actually be inviting any guests to dinner tonight. He himself, was inviting Rose, and some couple named Amy and Rory. He remembered Rory from when he was younger, as he actually tried to interact with the neighbors unlike Elijah.<p>

Therefore he was surprised when Rory contacted him, and informed him of his brother's wrongdoing to young Amelia Pond, Rory's wife to be. He had insisted they come to dinner, where he could try to mend any broken bonds left by his brother's careless behavior. He twirled slightly in his desk chair, it was quiet day, as usual. Rose walked slowly in, trailing her hand on the desk.

"So... Elijah does have a friend coming tonight." she informed him, sinking down into the chair in front of his desk. "Clara's coming." he sat up in surprise, running his fingers through his hair.

"Really? Well..." he trailed off. This was going to be a disaster.

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><p>Amy knew. He didn't know. Neither did Rory. But she knew, she knew she was supposed to be buried, long dead under the soils of Manhattan. She was dead, and yet, she was here. It had all come flooding back to her, when she whacked him with a cricket bat. But she, she had died of old age! And yet here she was, living a life day after day, watching him strutting around town with that same goofy grace, and yet he went by the name Elijah Smith.<p>

She didn't know what was going on, except that she needed to get to the bottom of it.

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><p>She watched Rose knock on the door, letting her loud and rather more bold friend go first, honestly she didn't know what to expect from this dinner. She had dressed casual, but was nervous it wouldn't be enough. She nervously tapped her foot against the cement steps.<p>

The door swung open, revealing Elijah, who seemed to be wearing tweed...that was purple. It actually quite worked on him, made the chin less noticeable and brought out- She pushed all of those nonsense thoughts out of her head. They were stupid things that would only get her in trouble.

"Come in! I'm Elijah by the way." he vigorously shook Rose's hand, and opened the door wider, allowing them entrance to the odd house.

Clara cautiously stepped inside, looking around her with nervous eyes, and nearly had to stifle a laugh at the clashing colors of the house. They seemed to have walked into the middle of a divided family, it was a large front room, with a twisting blue staircase on one side, and grated steps on the other. Both staircases led to an upstairs that was hard to make out in the faded lights from one side, and the harsh lights from the other.

One side of the house, (the one Clara rather prefered) was blue and metallic, the staircase the only spot of bright color. It was neat and tidy, the floors reflecting back her face, the walls simple and devoid of posters and other things.

The other side was orange and had strange bits of coral strung up on the walls. It was considerably more homely, but messier, and seemed louder. The floor was grated, and through it she could see that books were crammed into every grate, as if it was a storage system. She heard Rose laugh out loud.

"My brother and I had a difference about decoration..." Elijah trailed off, and Clara grinned.

"You don't say." she laughed, "Which side did you design?" he pointed to the blue side, and she tried not to look surprised. Elijah offered to take their coats (the coming winter could be brutal) and stood there awkwardly until he returned as Rose wandered around the room.

"Rose!" a man with gravity defying brown hair practically skipped in front of Rose, and engulfed her in a hug. Clara raised her eyebrows slightly at this display of public affection, but said nothing, just gave her friend a knowing look as the man bounced over to Clara.

"I'm John Smith, you must be Clara!" he exclaimed, shaking her hand. She nodded in confirmation that this was true. "Brilliant. Elijah didn't pay you into coming did he?" for the last sentence he lowered his voice so Rose couldn't hear.

"No, not at all." she assured him, and he grinned.

"Good, good." he said, and pretended to look innocent when Elijah walked back in , fresh from dropping off their coats.

"Shall we retire to the dining room?" he asked politely, and offered his arm to Clara. She took it gladly, smiling a bit at the sudden important air.

"We'll join you in a bit," John said, "In the mean time, I just left Amy and Rory in there,and if you do anything to upset her I'll murder you." Elijah merely nodded, but he did turn rather white.

"Amy's here?" Clara asked, as he lead her into a hall off the metallic side. She was highly amused to find that the division in color and decoration led to the hallway as well.

"A fact I just learned now." he sighed, and Clara's feet clanked against the grate under her feet. She decided that she liked the metallic floors better.

"So Chin Boy," she asked him, not breaking the loose clasp of their arms, "Why the formal air?"

"I honestly have no idea." he answered truthfully, "It just seemed like the right thing to say." she laughed softly at that, and then he was pushing open a door at the end of the long hall, and Clara grinned at Amy and Rory.

Amy didn't look quite right however, she looked quite pale, and sat up straight when she saw Elijah's face.

"Doctor?" she asked, but Elijah simply looked confused.

"I'm afraid my brother's the Doctor." he said, "I'm just a jobless writer." Clara saw Amy's face sink into the folds of despair for a slight second before she put on a rather forced smile.

"Sorry." she excused herself for the bathroom, Clara watched her go, a slight frown puckering her lips. What was going on with her friend?

"Sorry about Amy." Rory spoke up as Clara sank down next to him on the metallic side of the dining room. "She's been odd lately."

"No problem." Clara responded, tossing her hair over her shoulder, and patting the seat next to her. "Well don't just stand there!" she exclaimed to Elijah, who quickly sat down next to her. "Why don't you tell me what you've been doing this past week?" she realised she was sounding rather like a teacher, with her forced sounding comments and fake smiles.

"Um... I reread the whole Harry Potter series." he said, and she grinned, finally a common ground.

"I love those books!" she exclaimed, as Amy came walking back in, looking more composed. "What's your favorite? Mines Half Blood Prince."

"I prefer the first." he said, and she smiled. She was trying to focus on their conversation instead of the worrying way Amy was silent. She was never quiet. And worse, she looked like she was trying to figure something out. The last time Clara had seen her with that facial expression, she had to pick up Rose and Amy from the police station, something about drunk dialing the old librarian down the road.

Rose walked into the room and Clara couldn't help but notice the sudden release of hand holding between the two.

"Nice of you to join us." she said, giving Rose the 'have you been snogging' look. Rose glared at her, taking the seat across the table.

* * *

><p>About an hour later, Clara sighed, and pushed back from the table, her mind and belly full. Elijah stood up as well, perhaps thinking along the same lines as her, because he quickly excused himself and Clara, saying something about wanting to show her the lake. She happily obliged, it seemed like just after a week of knowing each other, Rose and John already seemed to be in that awkward couple faze. Although technically, they weren't a couple, but Clara was counting the minutes until they finally snogged.<p>

She threw on her green army jacket, and walked outside with Elijah.

"Sorry to drag you out here,my brother's a bit... well." he apologised, as he redirected her to a path directly outside the house.

"I don't mind." she said honestly, "I would have gotten a whole recount from Rose about it later anyways." he smiled slightly at that, and she smiled back. The path they were taking was through dense pine trees, and she could hardly see anything, except for the lanterns set along the path at regular intervals, casting pools of light onto the path.

"She does seem like a talker." he admitted, and she looked at the ground, a blush rising to her cheeks for whatever reason.

"She is. John seems like one too. And you as well." she added the last bit as an afterthought. Although quieter than his loud brother, Elijah did know how to talk.

"We.. he... are." he stumbled over his words, as if his lips didn't quite know how to forms when around her.

"Do I scare you?" she laughed slightly. He blushed, his cheeks illuminated by a lantern.

"A bit... yeah. You're just, hard to figure out."

"Like I'm Impossible?"

"Sort of, you're the Impossible girl... My Impossible Girl." Clara glanced up at the sound of her new name, and eyes glinting in the light. Her Mum used to call her that. In her distraction, her foot got caught in a tree branch.

"I'm stuck!" she realised how foolish she sounded, struggling to pull her foot free. Elijah, glancing back, saw her current predicament and grasped her arms and attempted to pull her free. With a great gasp, her foot came free, and she fell, straight on top of Elijah. He caught her fall, and they both tumbled to the ground, and all the sudden she was very aware that she was inches away from his face, and that their bodies were pressed together in a very awkward angle. They both stuttered over their words for a split second, before she sprang up off of him, and watched as he got to his feet as well.

"Well... shall we continue?" he asked her, after several uncomfortable moments of silence.

"Yes, yes of course." she replied, hating how formal her voice sounded. After several more minutes of silence, they reached the lake that Elijah must have talking about.

Clara gasped. She had never seen anything so extremely beautiful. It was a full moon tonight, and the moonlight reflected onto the water, making the whole lake shine silver. Flowers floated across the surface, their petals reaching for the sky, the ice just barely crisping their buds. It had such an alien feel about it, the same feeling she got with Elijah. It was gorgeous, beautiful, and she didn't object when Elijah led her down to the surface.

He dipped his hand into the water, making a cup with his hands, and dumped the water onto Clara's hands. It was crisp, and cool, and smelled of flowers. She dipped her hands in, and sighed as she felt her worry leave her.

"How does it do that?" she asked him, pulling her hands out of the water and wiping them dry on her skirt.

"Make you feel at peace, you mean?"

"Yeah."

"I don't know. There's a reason nobody knew me when I was a boy, it's because I spent every day at my Grandma's by this sexy lake."

"Sexy?"

"Well, in reality, it's called lake TARDIS, but I call it Sexy Lake."

She couldn't help but smile slightly.

"It's magical." she whispered, trailing her hands over the soft grass at the lakes edge. "and warm." at this she frowned slightly, the winter chill seemed to have abandoned them as soon as they came within sight of the lake.

"It's always like that." he said, "But I don't mind. Winter bugs me. I hate waiting for Spring."

"You didn't seem like a patience man to me."

"It's because I'm not." he laughed, and drew a flower up onto the shore. "If you press the flower between the pages of a book, it makes a lovely decoration."

"Do you think I could keep it alive with some water?" she asked, holding the delicate blossum in her hands.

"I don't know, maybe." he shrugged his shoulders. She opened her mouth, unsure of what to say next, when a loud giggle interupted them.

"Rose?" she demanded, and her blonde friend and John tumbled out of the trees.

"Oh John," Rose exaggerated, "It's so magical." they both laughed, while Clara and Elijah turned red.

"Well, it's late." Clara said, standing up, "Rose, if you want a ride, I suggest you come now."

"Bad attitude." Rose stuck out her tongue, but gave John a farewell hug anyways.

"You might want this." the Doctor handed her the blossom. "I can get you some of the lake water."

"Thanks." she smiled, and kissed him on the cheek. She was the last to leave the lake, glancing back at the stars one last time.

"Do you remember?" Amy's voice came out of nowhere, and Clara whipped around, then laughed.

"You got me." she smiled, "Amy, remember what?"

"The Dalek Asylum?" Amy asked, and Clara scoffed.

"What in the world is a dalek? Amy are you feeling alright?" Amy looked heavily disappointed.

"Yeah, just a bit sleep deprived." she answered.

Amy waited until Clara had walked off before kneeling beside the lake.

"I know you can hear me." she whispered to it's surface, "The Doctor always said you had conscious. I know you can't respond, but I will try as hard as I can to bring them back." Amy dipped her face in the lake water, before straightening up. "I will get us out of this mess." she promised the once machine now lake. As if responding, the lake bubbled.

Amy smiled lightly, before walking back into the forest, after the others.

_"Should we worry about her?" she asked him, but he shook his head._

_"We don't need to worry about her, the other's will think she's insane,and if not, we'll kill her. Simple as that."_


	4. Clasped Hands

_**As requested, I tried to make more tenxrose but it ended up very whouffleish.**_

_**But don't worry I have big plans for Rose and ten in the next chapter. Enjoy and a special thanks to knittingFamine for helping me with this chapter:)**_

* * *

><p>Rose was suspicious as soon the nuns took over the hospital. They marched in with their odd cat like faces, and told them that the mayor had granted them free use of the hospital. They yelled at people often, and threatened to fire her twice for going into John's office without a substantial need. Rose and John called them the devil cats behind their backs, and often tried to make life miserable for the imposters.<p>

Sadly, it didn't break the cat's good performance in caring for patients, and both Rose and John were worried they'd lose their jobs to these evil nuns. Whenever voicing her opinions to Clara, she would get a shake of the head and a frown, and Rose would growl at her, if only in her mind. Clara didn't understand, she was a teacher.

"We need to get rid of the cats." she groaned to John one afternoon, after leaving work together. "They just are so... they seem to be up to something." It had been about six months since the Smith's moved to town, and Rose and John seemed inseparable. She hadn't failed to notice Clara's continued visits with Elijah either, and teased her about it endlessly.

"I agree." he answered, thinking along the same lines. "I think it's time we call in... the team."

"The team?"

"The team."

* * *

><p>The moment school got out, Clara's phone rang. It was Rose (she now checked her caller ID, to avoid more mistakes.) and she picked it up with her usual trill of "Oswin here!"<p>

"Oswin... we require your...talents." Rose said mysteriously into the phone, and Clara rolled her eyes.

"What talents may I ask?"

"Clara..." Rose sighed, "Your hacking talents, duh."

"You know I stopped hacking into things after the principal suspended me!" Clara protested.

"This is important. Life or death."

"By that, I take it you mean... Life or you getting fired?"

"Pretty much."

"I'll do it."

* * *

><p>Elijah was sitting down at Sexy lake, when his phone rang. He practically lept to his feet, a grin already etched on his face. Surely Clara was calling. He took the call without checking who was calling.<p>

"Clara!" he called into the phone, "I've thought about your offer, and of course I'll pretend to be your boyfriend when your Father comes home!"

"What?" squeaked Rose from the other side.

"Oh... Not Clara then?" he asked.

"I'm afraid not." John said, "Rose just dropped the phone. What did you tell her?"

"Something I wasn't supposed to..."Elijah trailed off, biting his lip nervously. "Why are you calling anyways?" he asked, annoyed.

"I need your help to break into the hospital and find out what those cat nuns are up to." John said, being brutally blunt.

"We're going to be breaking and entering?"

"Yep."

"I'm in!"

* * *

><p>Amy was painting her toenails when her phone rang. Propping the phone inbetween her shoulder and her head, and picked it up.<p>

"Hello?" she called into the phone.

"Amy!" Rose sang into the speaker, "How would you like to go behind Rory's back, break into the hospital and destroy the cat nuns domain for good?"

"Hell yes." she said, flinging the nail polish aside. "Let me grab my boots." _Finally_. She thought. _He's doing something._

* * *

><p>Clara was rather excited to put her hacking skills in to use today. Although her Mum had never approved of her hacking talents, the computer keys still called to her. Rose had come home for a brief spell, to put on dark clothes, and now they group outside the hospital, out of view of the security cameras.<p>

"Elijah will be staying with you." John instructed her, as Elijah plopped down next to Clara and her laptop. "Because he's honestly just a nuisance."

"Oi!"

"It is true." Clara agreed, and only looked mildly annoyed when he flicked her on the nose.

"And then, the Wolf, the Legs, and the glasses will sneak into their secret lab..." Rose explained, and Clara crinkled her nose.

"Codenames? Really?"

"Codenames are cool." Elijah muttered.

"Of course they are." Clara sighed, and Amy looked over at the pair of them, and Clara could swear she saw a flicker of depression at the sound of hearing Elijah say 'cool.' She decided she must have imagined however, as Amy turned away with a slight frown and set to lacing up her boots.

"You are not here to judge." Rose instructed, "You are here to hack into the security system." Clara rolled her eyes, but obligingly opened her laptop.

* * *

><p>John was glad it didn't take Clara long to hack into the security system and take down the cameras and protections on the building. Amy still volunteered to go first, to check for any life threatening mistakes, but they both vetoed the idea. All he could see was the golden shine of Rose's hair in front of him as they slipped into the hospital, her feet sounding like that of a lion, quiet and soft.<p>

Amy came in behind him, and the three of them silently padded through the glossy hospital, occasionally dodging the security guards who were looking after the overnight patients. It wouldn't be easy for a normal burglar to navigate the maze of falls without running into the burly guards, but Rose and John had sweet talked the guards, and they faked turning their backs whenever they saw them coming.

Everyone in the hospital hated the nuns, and the guards were no acceptance. That's why, after hearing a run down of the plan from Rose, they simply didn't notice them, in the hopes that the nuns would be gone soon.

* * *

><p>Clara had tapped into the security feed, and with her legs spread out in front, she watched as her friends moved through the halls like carefull ninjas. Elijah had been unusually quiet, his hands picking at the grass beneath their legs. She looked at him, her brown eyes regarding his blue-green ones cooly.<p>

"What's up?" she asked him, setting the laptop back on the grass and tightening her coat around herself. The winter chill still hadn't quite left the air, and she could still feel the cold creeping up her back like a worm.

"Nothing." he lied, but his eyes betrayed him. They looked at her with big wide sadness, and she could almost see the beginning of tears starting in their depths.

"I can see when you lie to me, in those big sad eyes of yours." she said, and scooched closer to him. "You can tell me." she promised. She felt a lot more comfortable around him now that she had known him for a while. She had gotten to know the person behind the awkward comments and 'cool' comments.

"It is..." he sighed, rubbing his eyes with his palms. "The one year anniversary of my Mother's death, and the ending to my marriage."

"You were married?" if she had anything in her mouth she would have spit it out.

"Her name was River Song." he said, picking at the grass with his long fingers, "Just another part of half the year from hell."

"Half the year?" she asked.

"Yeah, because then I met you." he said, quirking up his mouth in a half smile.

"What happened to your Mom?" she asked before she could stop herself, and then silently cursed herself. More people than she could count had asked her the same question, and over time it simply drove her mad. Every time that question came out of someones mouth, she relived the pain of hearing her Mother's last moments with her. "Forget it." she said, before he could respond. "I know how that feels to be asked that question, I'm sorry." he chuckled.

"I'll tell you." he said, and she looked up in surprise. "John would say it's good for me to talk about my marriage failing and my Mother dying." he rubbed his eyes with his palms.

"I understand if you don't want to talk about it. I sure did-"

"It was a Monday." he said, cutting her off. He leaned back against the grass, his palms splayed on the grass and his eyes glassy as he looked at the stars. She leaned back with him, the cool ground lightly stinging the back of her head. He reached over and took her hand, and she wrapped her fingers in his, tracing the back of his hand with her fingertip.

"I thought it would just be a normal day. River and I hadn't been getting along lately, but I thought that it was nothing, every couple experiences bumps and bruises. We just had an especially bad argument, so I left. Stormed out of the house and over to my Moms. She wasn't up yet, so I decided to make her breakfast." he took a deep breath, "Right when I put the eggs on, River called me. I picked up, and the gas oil, which I didn't know my Father had left out, spilled." Clara let out a soft gasp.

"River had called me to tell me to meet her at the library, which had always been our special place. I nearly forgot about the breakfast completely, yelling up at my Mum that some eggs were on the stove. I left in a hurry, I thought River wanted to make amends for our horrible fight. I arrived at the library, and met her in the astronomy section, my favorite books. She turned around to face me, and said that we were done, she was kicking me out, changing the locks, and that the divorce papers would be delivered shortly. She was always blunt, River was."

"Right after my ex-wife left, I got a phone call from John. He was screaming at me about how Mum was in the hospital because some idiot had tried to make her eggs." he gulped hard, "She didn't last a day. Her burns were too severe, and she made John promise to look after me or I wouldn't be here at all. To this day, my Father still has not said one single word to me."

"What was her name?" Clara asked softly.

"Gallifrey Smith. She gave us the most normal names because she couldn't have one." he laughed slightly, but it was a hollow sound. "Let me guess, you're gonna say you totally get what I'm feeling, but have no clue."

"I understand exactly." she said, "You're blaming yourself, because everywhere you look today you see her. Both of them. River and your Mum because in a way, at least to you, both of them died that day. And you've probably visited her grave today and lingered outside of River's house to see if anyone's home."

"How do you know that?" he asked her, turning his head to get a better look at her.

"Because I went through the same thing when my Mum died." she said simply. "Except, since I was twelve, I didn't have a husband, of course. But my Dad stopped talking, sent me away to live with my aunt for a month. I got a cold," she said, figuring she should tell him her story as well, "And that was all it was for me, a cold. But I'm pretty sure I passed that on to my Mum. One night, that's all it was, a cold, and she refused to kiss me goodnight in case it wasn't the same strand. The next morning she was dead."

"You don't know it was you that gave her the illness," he pointed out.

"And how do you know that it was you that knocked over the oil?" she pointed out, "For all we know it was your Dad, and he hasn't said a word to since because of shame."

"He's talked to John."

"John is easy to talk to."

"And I'm not?!"

"You're to easy to talk to." she said, "and it scared him away. And I know you won't stop blaming yourself because of something I said, because I sure didn't when my aunt said it to me."

He sat up, and pulled her into a brief, almost violent hug. She buried her face into his shoulder, and she could feel tears wetting her hair as he cried, and she found that she was crying too, because she hadn't ever found someone who thought like she did before. She pulled back partly, and only then noticed how close their faces were. He leaned in-

The Harry Potter ringtone went off. They both sprang apart, and Clara reached around for her phone, propping it up to her ear.

"Rose?" she asked.

"No." John said grimly, "But you may need to call the police."

* * *

><p>Amy quickly picked the lock, a skill she had learned from traveling with the Doctor a long time ago. They had reached the Cat Nun's base in no time, arriving there quickly and efficiently. She pushed the door open, and was nearly shoved over as Rose pushed inside.<p>

"Oh my god." she heard her friend whisper, and John pushed ahead of Amy as well. Before entering the room, she considered if this was something alien, what should she do?

When she heard John gasp out loud, and the muffled sounds of someone sobbing, she ducked inside quickly. She would have screamed, but bit down on her knuckles as not to draw attention. The sobbing was coming from Rose, who was wrapped up in John's arms, as he stroked her hair. He too, had tears streaming down his face.

Amy staggered back, wanting to vomit. The Cat's 'medical lab' was full of experiments all right. On humans. Normal humans that had gone missing from everyday society, someone she recognised from the newspaper. They were awake, but seemed incapable of speech, their skin was a mottled red, their eyes bloodshot and watery, the only sounds emitting from their throats a raw whisper, their hands and feet bound to the lab slab.

"This can't be happening." Amy said out loud, "No, no, he wouldn't let this happen!" John and Rose didn't seem to be paying much attention to her.

"Don't touch them." John said, "And you'll get infected. No wonder we had such advanced treatments." She heard him calling Clara. Amy was shocked herself to find tears streaming down her face. The awful part was (the part she hated herself for) is she wasn't sure if the tears were for the poor souls stretched out on the table, or the fact that the Doctor was no where to be found. He wouldn't come in this time, with his sonic screwdriver and some witty remark. No, he was gone.

_Hospital Lockdown initiated_. A computer chimed, and Rose went white.

"No." she whispered, and ran over to the computer.

"Rose I don't think you should-"

A jet of white gas sprayed out from the computer and hit Rose in the face. She spun around slightly, laughing.

"Hello, darlings!" she cried, and waved her hands about.

"Rose...?" John said cautiously, and she waved at him flirtatiously.

"Hellllo! And anyways, my name isn't Rose, it's Cassandra..."

* * *

><p><strong>review:)<strong>


	5. Stay

"Cassandra?" he asked, her slowly, and she nodded.

"Casssandra."

"That gas made her high." Amy said pointedly, and John nodded his agreement.

"Rose." he said carefully, "Alright, fine, Cassandra, we need to get out of here and call the police... so." he grabbed her hand, but she shook him off.

"No." she pouted, "I can think of much better things... to occupy our time." She pulled John's mouth to her's with brutal force, and Amy watched in high amusement as John squirmed, Rose ran her fingers through his hair, and pulled him towards her by the waistband on his pants.

"Nice first kiss." Amy said, pulling Rose off of him, and shoving her out the door. "We're coming back." she promised the people, "we'll save you."

* * *

><p>"Ok... um we may have a small problem." Clara said to Elijah, her fingers tapping frantically on the keyboard.<p>

"What problem?" Elijah asked desperately, his hands flapping around as he tried to figure out what to do.

"I can't terminate the hospital lockdown. They're stuck in there!" she shrieked, pulling at her hair, and jumping up. "We need to go to the police."

"Call them." he said, and flipped her phone at her. It landed five feet away from her, hitting a tree. When she picked it up, she saw (to her extreme horror) that the screen was shattered, the phone not responding to her careful touch.

"You broke my phone!" she shrieked at him, and her could practically see the steam rolling off her curls.

"What are we going to do?!" he yelled.

"I DON'T KNOW!" she yelled back. "We run?" he nodded, and she gulped. He grasped her hand, and they both bolted.

* * *

><p>Amy pulled them into a closet as soon as she heard the hisses from the cats getting closer. John locked eyes with hers, and she saw true fear in their depths. He didn't remember the TARDIS than, whoever he was.<p>

"What are we going to do?" he whispered, perhaps he saw the fearlessness in her eyes, the firm set of her mouth, her certainty that they would get out of this alive.

"I have no idea." she said honestly.

"I know!" Rose said, and tried to kiss John again, but Amy pulled her back. She stumbled back slightly, her arm bumping against a tray of disinfectants at her elbow. She glanced back at the assortment of acids and medicines, and then looked back at John with a fiery glint in her eye.

"What about this?" she said, holding up some acid green liquid.

"That's one of the cat's medicines-" he broke off, a grin spreading across his face, as he pushed Rose away slightly (again). "That they developed from the illnesses used on these poor people..." he hugged Amy tightly, and she laughed.

"Yes!" she cried, "It should cure them."

"Then, more people would help us get out of here." he said, "And maybe we can fix Rose while we're at it."

"A double win!" she punched the air, because for a minute, just a minute, she could pretend that everything was as usual. The Doctor would come bursting through the door, holding his screwdriver with a confused expression on his face, Rory slightly behind him, and she would hug them both, the golden age.

She would give anything to go back there, to forget the memories of New York, of angels, of seeing the last expression on his face before she disappeared. Maybe if she got him to remember, she could ask him about Clara, about why, in this dream, he looked at her like Rory looked at her.

"We just have to get past them." he whispered, pointing outside the door where the Cat's certainly prowled, waiting for the right moment to attack.

"Yep." she said, "and I know just how to do it." when he gave her a confused look, she rolled her eyes and grabbed a tray, pushing all the medical devices off it. "Just wait here, and I'll be back soon. Get all the disinfectants you think we'll need."

* * *

><p>Clara and Elijah ran. He gripped her hand, even though their clenching fingers were probably slowing them down. He was practically dragging her along, his long legs much faster than her short ones. They had taken the quicker route, through the forests bordering TARDIS. She was nearly crying, as she stumbled over another rock, only to be yanked along by Elijah.<p>

"You have to go." she said, as she fell down, her ankle throbbing so badly, gesturing helplessly at her it. "I think I've broken it." he crouched down for a moment.

"Yep," he said, "You've broken it." she winced, trying not to cry, or look at her ankle, but the pain was great. She felt like she was going to throw up.

"Go on then!" she said, but he smirked slightly.

"Like I'm gonna do that." he scoffed, and before she could protest, he scooped her up and threw her over his shoulder like she was a sack of potatoes. He was really stronger than he looked then, she figured, as he began to run with her bouncing lightly on his back. She could feel the muscles of his arms and back through his shirt, and they were most definitely hidden by his jacket, as he seemed to have no problem with carrying her, as if she weighed close to nothing.

* * *

><p>"Ready." Amy said, tossing the pan to the side, "Did you get the disinfectants set up?" John nodded, but looked a bit sheepish. Only then did Amy notice the lip stick mark on his cheek, and the unconscious blonde on the floor.<p>

"You didn't." she said, and he held up his hands in defense.

"She was...getting in the way. I just gave her some sleeping pills she'll be fine." she rolled her eyes, but decided to let this pass... just this once. Rose had been very annoying.

"Ready?"she repeated, "We could very well get infected or die."

"Or worse, be expelled." he added, and she let out a laugh, and he chuckled as well, throwing her the disinfectant tube.

* * *

><p>Elijah burst through the door, Clara still safely in his arms, and strode up to the desk. The receptionist barely looked up, but when she did, her mouth fell open.<p>

"Should I call an ambulance?" she asked, half rising out of her chair. Elijah only then looked down at Clara's ankle, which had been bumping against his chest the whole time. He'd taken off her boot while it was still small, and was rather glad he had, seeing as it had swollen two times it's size, and was a rather nasty purple.

"Is it bad?" Clara asked weakly, and he barked at the receptionist to get a chair, and get a squad to the hospital. He set Clara down in the plush chair she offered, and Clara sighed, closing her eyes.

"Did we do it?" she asked weakly. Elijah nodded, and kissed her forehead.

"I explained everything to her, and they're sending a squad up right now. I've also called Rory, and he's coming here to see what he can do about your ankle."

"Are you going up to the hospital?"

"Yes."

"I'm coming too." she said, and her voice was strong and firm. "You're not going without me."

"Clara." he knelt down beside her, "You can't walk."

"My laptops still up there." she proteseted, and he lightly laughed.

"I'll grab it for you." he whispered, and leaned in, kissing her forehead again, and brushing her sweaty hair out of her eyes. "Pinky-promise." he linked his pinky with hers. "And I'll bring back Rose while I'm at it."

She laughed slightly. "I'm counting on you chin boy." she said, and he nodded.

"I know."

* * *

><p>Amy watched with mixed emotions as John pumped the antibiotics into the 'test subjects' IVs.<p>

"Will it work?" she asked hopefully, and he shook his head.

"Maybe, in time." he sighed, and sank back against the floor. "I should have known. It could take months, years."

"We don't have that much time." Amy said, and sank down next to him. "I didn't ever think it would end like this." she whispered, resting her head against the wall and closing her eyes.

"Didn't think what would end like this?"

"My story." she said, "The story of Amelia Jessica Pond, the idiotic girl who thought she could save the world."

"What is that supposed to mean? We'll probably just get kicked out."

"No." she whispered, "I can't do it. I can't think like he does, I can't find him."

"Find who?"

"The Doctor!" she cried, sitting up, "And you think I'm insane, and I don't care." she kicked at a hospital leg. "He would save us, he would save all of them!" she gestured to the room full of sick people. "We wouldn't be in this mess."

"The Doctor?" he sounded quite curious, and she opened her mouth when-

"Amy! John!" Elijah's voice broke through her facade, and she looked up. For a fleeting second, she thought he had come back. The Doctor was here, he would save her, just like she knew he would. "I brought the police!" he said excitedly, and her hopes died.

The next bit was a blur of police uniforms, and white lights, and the next thing she knew, Rory was standing in front of her. She couldn't contain herself. She fell into his arms, and began to cry.

Rory, was not used to this type of affection from Amy. He had gotten a call from the police officer, saying that his girlfriend had been found in a hospital test lab, where she'd allegedly broken in. The patients had already been wheeled away when he got there, and now he held a sobbing Amy in his arms. He wasn't quite sure how to react, so he just pulled her as close as he could, pressing her face into his shoulder, and kissing the top of her head.

* * *

><p>Elijah unlocked Clara's apartment door. He knew where the spare key was, and had decided to notify Clara about Rose. Rose would need to stay in the hospital due to exposure from sort of drug, and wouldn't be coming home until tomorrow afternoon. Rory had informed him, over Amy's shoulder, that he had driven Clara home after tending to her ankle.<p>

He didn't know what he had expected when he opened the door, but smiled a little when he saw. All the lights were on, and she was asleep on the sofa, her foot still propped on the table, her head slumped back against the cushions. Her smashed phone was in her hand, the screen blinking, as if trying to muster the courage to turn on. He sighed a little bit, and took it gently out of her head, and checking the screen. She had been on his contact, but it was hard to see because of the cracks radiating from the center. A notification near the top said that her call had failed to send, the broken phone not working properly.

He sighed slightly, and knelt down, scooping her gently into his arms, her head lolling against his shoulder, her foot encased in plaster bumping slightly against his arm. She shifted slightly, and suddenly he could feel her small breath on his arm, as her face rubbed lightly against his arm, her features twitching slightly.

"Elijah." she sighed in her sleep softly, her eyes fluttering, before they resumed their normal shut position. He carried her to the room that was hers, resting her down on the bed, tucking the covers up to her chin.

"Goodnight Miss Oswald." he whispered to her, leaning down to brush his lips lightly against her forehead.

"Stay." she murmured, opening her eyes, but he was already gone, having left her apartment minutes previously.

* * *

><p>John knew he should probably go home, make sure Elijah had gotten home safe, but he couldn't leave the pink yellow being still asleep in the hospital bed in front of him. He didn't really feel bad about knocking her out, but still smiled down at the way her blonde hair spread against the white pillow, the only bright thing in this dingy hall.<p>

"John?" she asked groggily, her eyes trying to focus on him. He knelt beside her head, placing a hand in her golden shine.

"I'm here," he promised, and she smiled slightly, looking up at him with unfocused eyes,

"I'm sorry." she muttered, and he smiled softly.

"Don't be." he said, "You were a good kisser at least." She smiled faintly, and reached up her hand. He took it, and pressed it to his face.

"Will you kiss me again?" she asked softly, and he looked a little alarmed. "I wouldn't have the courage to do this, but I'm still a little loopy." he knelt down, and pressed his lips to hers gently.

* * *

><p>Amy sighed, letting the water wash down over her hair and back, breathing a sigh as the hot water released the tension from her shoulders. She soon stepped out though, wrapping a towel securely around herself.<p>

She looked up to the mirror, and nearly screamed. Someone had come in while she was taking a shower, and etched in words on the steam that collected on the mirror.

_Tell anyone, and you die._ She stared at the words until the steam dissolved and only a faint imprint was left behind.

Then, sinking against the bathtub, she allowed herself to cry again.


	6. Red Dust

**Ok, I have no idea what a broken ankle feels like or how it's treated.**

**So if this is not medically correct, forgive me.**

**SPECIAL THANKS TO knittingfamine, who proofreads this story:)**

**ALSO, VOTING TIME**

**Would you like whouffle to well hook up next chapter, or in like three chapters.**

**LEt me know.**

* * *

><p>The first thing Elijah heard upon entering Clara's apartment was a crash. That was not a promising sound, seeing as he knew for a fact that she was alone, because Rose was on a not so secret date with his brother. He had come by to drop off her newly bought phone (he felt it was necessary after he broke her last) and was rather alarmed by the sound that split through the silence like a cracked immediately bolted towards the source of the sound, which happened to be the kitchen, worried that Clara had fallen over and broken her other ankle. It seemed like the sort of thing she would do.<p>

The first thing he noticed was that she was not using her crutches. The next thing he saw was Clara herself, sitting in the middle of some sort of liquid, with flour coating her face and arms. She was glaring rather avidly at her blue encased foot, her arms crossed and her mouth puckered with annoyance.

"What did that ankle ever do to you?" he asked before he could stop himself, and she looked up, a rather confused expression tainting her features.

"How did you get in?" she asked, frowning slightly, "Did I leave the door unlocked again?"

"Rose gave me a key." he tossed her the silver piece of metal. "She wanted me to check on you. Which was a good idea." he gestured towards her current predicament.

"Are you just going to stand there Chin Boy, or are you going to help me up?" He immediately obeyed, blushing a rather fierce red at his stupidity before hitching his arms around her and pulling her upright. He was quite aware of the way her body felt pressed against his, as he whirled her around and placed her in the kitchen chair. He then grabbed a rag from the counter and began cleaning off her cast.

"You shouldn't be cooking right now." he lightly scolded her, wiping off the last remnants of milk, and starting on the floor. "You've still got four weeks to go."

"Ugh. Don't remind me." she said, watching him clean. "Sorry about this." she added as an afterthought, biting her lip.

"It is my pleasure to serve you." he said a smile on his face, and then moved to the mixing bowl. "what are you making?"

"A souffle." she sighed, "but it's gonna fail..."

* * *

><p>Clara was correct. Except they had to flee outside to escape the gaseous fumes emitting from the stove, which was new. They had called the fire department, and now she was collapsed on the grass, laughing her head off, because she could hear the sirens, just to help with a burning souffle that got out of hand.<p>

He was laughing too, as the fire teams walked in and out of the house, throwing the pair odd looks. When Rose came home however, the laughter died. Rose was livid, yelling at Clara about how they had no where to stay now, at least for a week, while all their stuff was washed to get the smoke out.

Clara sat there in silence through it all, but one last glance from Elijah sent her into peals of laughter again.

"You can stay at my place." Elijah assured Rose, "I'm sure John wouldn't mind having you over." Rose visibly blushed, but didn't say anything, just put her hands on her hips and pursed her lips.

"Alright then." she said finally, "Clara, you owe me."

"I do not!" Clara protested, "I've picked you up from the-"

"Alright." Rose cut her off again, amid a curious glance from Elijah.

* * *

><p>He walked up to the door of his son's strange house, his dirty boots scuffing up the polished steps. He took out the key, the key that John had given to him incase he ever stopped wandering and wanted to stay with them for a while.<p>

He twisted the key in the lock, and the door fell open. Red dirt fell from his shoulders as he stepped inside, his gruff face regarding the odd house interior with dull eyes. It was crazy, just like Elijah was. Elijah was to crazy for his own damn good. He stepped onto the polished floor, and looked around at the house. He chose the grated side, the dirt from his boots falling through and dusting the books below.

He marched up the stairs like a soldier, approaching the room he had once shared with Gallifrey. He stepped inside, and shut the door, before taking out his outdated phone. He dialed John's number.

"Dad?" John's voice sounded surprised.

"I'm in the house." he said gruffly, "need a place to stay for a few weeks."

* * *

><p>Clara limped towards the house, greatly supported by Elijah. Her crutches had not been salvaged from the house, and they had been informed that they would never be moving back in. The souffle had apparently created a new toxic gas, and scientists wanted to examine it. They had evacuated the whole building, and even though the government had promised to pay them a large sum of money, they would be living at Elijah and John's for a while.<p>

"It is partly my fault." Elijah had said, "and I refuse to make you have to buy a new house. We have tons of extra rooms." Rose had seemed to perk up at the mention of moving in with them, something Clara hadn't failed to notice.

He led them into the odd house, and quickly set Clara down in a blue chair by the door.

"You're heavy." he groaned, ignoring her glare. Rose sighed.

"I'm so going to regret this." she said, "but Clara, do you want to borrow some of my clothes?"

"Clothes? But they're all in the our house... YOU HAVE NOT BEEN SLEEPING OVER HERE HAVE YOU?" Clara shrieked.

"I'll take that as a yes please." Rose responded, and skipped lightly up the stairs. Clara turned her horrified glance to Elijah.

"Oh dear lord." was all he said.

* * *

><p>"Should we try and make another souffle?" he asked Clara, setting a tea cup in front of her. She'd taken a shower, and he tried not to notice her dripping wet hair, or the slight droplets that gathered on her eyelashes and dissolved when she blinked. Rose had to help her in the shower, but other than that, she seemed to be fine with the whole ankle thing.<p>

"Better not." she said, "we might have to evacuate the whole town." he laughed,and sat in the dining room chair across from her, resting his face on his sleeve.

"I can't believe that for the last week, Rose has been sleeping in my house and I never noticed." he said, and she nodded.

"Yeah, better wise up chin boy." she advised, grinning slightly at him. He only protested lightly, but suddenly found himself very close to her. Her brown eyes were wide, staring into his with curiosity, and almost... yearning?

"Where is the tea?" a gruff voice that he knew all too well said from behind them. Elijah whipped around, and Clara let out a small shriek. "Oh." his father said, "I suppose..." he cut off. "I thought you were John." he turned and walked into the kitchen. He looked down at his tea cup, before standing up abruptly. He turned and left.

"Elijah!" Clara called after him, but he kept walking.

* * *

><p>"I AM GOING TO MURDER YOU!" she yelled at him, as she fell down next to him, nearly crying because her ankle was on fire.<p>

"Why the hell did you follow me?' he asked, jumping up and looking at her cast. His eyebrows bunching up in concern.

"Because." she said, "You looked sad." he had to laugh. Where did she come from? This short little girl with the odd nose and easy smile. His life had resorted to shades of grey and black after River left, and suddenly in came this small bundle of sassiness and wonder, spraying his life back into color. He felt alive around her, felt like he could breathe.

For the months following that dreaded Monday, he couldn't breathe. It was like something was pressing on his chest. He would sit alone, wondering why the hell this had happened to him. Seeing his Dad had brought back that feeling, and he couldn't be around her, couldn't let her see him like that.

"You never asked me why I made a souffle today." she said, and he looked down at her. Her voice sounded wistful, her eyes glassy.

"Why?" he asked her, his lips forming the question, even though all he wanted to do was kiss her.

"because my Mum died five years ago, today." she said, flopping back on the grass. "That and I was bored because I have a bloody broken ankle."

"I'll have to carry you back." he groaned, flopping back on the grass. "Damn." he took her hand anyways, pressing it gently to his mouth.

"She got sick... like I told you." her voice broke. He sat up, and pulled her close. He'd wanted to hold her for so long, and he pressed his face into her hair as she silently cried, shaking into his shoulder. He found himself crying to, because they both were so damn messed up inside, because he was lost and didn't know why. "I don't know where I am." she sobbed, "I don't know _who_ I am."

They were both lost, he realised, lost because things got messed up, thing got tangled, until he could hardly see through the tense entanglement of vinesthat seemed to be all his life was made of now. When he really thought about it, Clara was the only one he had left now. John had given up on him long ago, his Father didn't talk to him, and his Mother was dead, his wife gone and left him.

"You are Clara Oswald, and I'm Elijah Smith." he said reassuringly, although the words felt false, forced out, because he didn't know. He didn't know who they were, or what purpose they had here.

"Clara Oswald." she repeated, her face still pressed into her shoulder.

"My impossible girl." he finished.

* * *

><p>Rose uneasily peeked into the kitchen, staring at the man who robotically drank a cup of tea. Elijah and Clara had disappeared, and she couldn't believe they would do this to her.<p>

"Rose?" John asked from behind her, and she whirled around, a guilty look already installed on her face.

"There's a man in your kitchen." she whispered.

"John. How nice to see you." The man said, in the same gruff robotic voice.

"Who are you?" Rose asked rather rudely

"Rose, let me introduce you to my Father."

* * *

><p>Elijah wished he could have stayed there with Clara all day. He still held her close to him, even though both their tears had faded away. Her body fit perfectly against his, her face still firmly pressed into his shoulder, and she was still slightly shaking, even though she kept murmuring that she was alright at regular intervals.<p>

He was the one to pull away, his eyes staring down at the grass. "I suppose." he said, slowly, "That we should head back." in the back of his mind, he rather foolishly hoped that she would refuse, and bring her lips to his in a passionate embrace.

That didn't happen.

"You're probably right." she said, and held out her arms again. He helped her up, pushing away any thoughts that she may like his embrace "Just help me limp slowly." he ignored this, and swept her up in his arms.

"I'm a lot stronger than I look." he said, and she nodded.

"I noticed, since you seem to sweep me up like I'm nothing."

He laughed slightly, and she laughed too. He loved the way her laugh shook slightly against him, the way it sounded, like a peal of bells.

That's why he was surprised when the bells were cut off, and she collapsed fully in his arms. He looked down, and his only thought was,_ why is this strange dart sticking out of my arm and Clara's neck_. Before everything went black.

* * *

><p>Amy was getting really annoyed with Rory. He seemed to understand that something was wrong with her, and wouldn't leave her alone. She knew she couldn't tell him. She wasn't worried about her own safety, she was worried about his. If she could convince anyone, sadly it couldn't be Rory.<p>

Throwing her hair over her shoulder, she stepped out from their apartment, ignoring his calls after her. She needed to get out.

"Amy!" he caught up to her anyways, and crossed in front of her, his arms crossed. "You forgot your lunch." he handed her the small plastic bag. "It's your first day."

"Stop worrying." she said, and it was true, she had accepted the modeling job. "It won't do me any-" everything went black.

* * *

><p>Clara didn't know where she was. She woke up in a black room, where the darkness pressed down on her like a cloud, and the silence rang around her like a crowd of angry bees. She tried to stand up, but another splitting pain from her ankle sent her soaring back down to the ground. "Where am I?" she called out, against her better judgement.<p>

"Clara?" Elijah whispered, and she cried out in relief, feeling around for him in the dark. She found his hand, and took it tightly.

"Elijah?" she whispered, and she felt his hand fumble around her face, cupping it in his hands. He rested his forehead against hers.

"Where are we?" he asked, but she simply shook her head, because she had no clue. As soon as she moved, the lights switched on. It was blinding. She dropped her hand from Elijah's, and brought to her eyes instead, crying out slightly as the harsh fluorescent lights invaded her skull.

"Is this..." Elijah stammered, and she brought her eyes to his face, blinking rapidly. "a hotel?" he finally stammered out, looking around at the blank yellow hall, with it's false end tables and fake flowers.

"Yeah." she said, automatically recognising where they were. "My Mum used to take me here when I was little. We'd rent one of the rooms, and spend the night." she sat up, adjusting her feet so her broken ankle wasn't directly under her. "It shut down a couple years ago though..."

"It looks brand new." Elijah said.

"Elijah? Clara?" Amy called, appearing from the end of the hall (with Rory) and bolting towards them. Clara threw her arms around her ginger friend, pulling her down to the ground.

"Have you figured out where we are yet?" Rory asked them grimly.

"The old hotel at the end of the town." Clara replied, as Elijah helped her up, before scooping her into his arms, carrying her like a sack of potatoes again. He reached towards a door handle.

"Don't!" Amy said quickly, slapping his hand away. He looked at her in alarm, Clara swinging lightly over his shoulder. "There's... things in the rooms."

"Things?"

"Nightmares." Elijah approached the door, his hand stretching uncertainly towards the door knob.

"Don't." Clara advised him, and he sighed, giving in, propping her more firmly on his shoulder.

"Thank you." Amy sighed in relief, closing her eyes for a second. "Why don't we find the lobby?"

* * *

><p>They found it rather quickly and easily, and Elijah immediately set Clara down in one of the chairs, groaning and stretching out his back. "We really need to get out of the habit of me carrying you around places." he said, and she rolled her eyes.<p>

"Stop moaning." she said lightly, "It was because of you I broke it in the first place."

"Was not!"

"Um... you were the one pulling me through the forest!"

"Yes...Well...I-... OH shut up!" he blushed, and she grinned. Amy shook her head slightly at the pair of them, a slight frown turning her features.

"Aren't you married?" she asked him, rather rudely, her eyes bright.

"Was. Married." he corrected her, "She dumped me, rather rudely."

"Good for her." Amy muttered.

"What is your problem?" Clara suddenly shot out, sitting up straight in her chair. Elijah and Rory both looked highly uncomfortable.

"My problem," Amy said, drawing out every word. "Is that he, is cheating on his wife, by flirting with you!"

"Divorced." Clara said slowly, "Or do I have to spell it out for you?" the two women glared at each other.

"Cat fight!" a loud, rude, american, male voice called out. "But I have to say," a male man, who was a hunk of... well... Clara wasn't about to even think it, walked in the room. "You two are mighty fine."

"She's engaged." Rory said tightly, eyeing the newcomer and drawing Amy to his side. The man, ignoring Rory, knelt down next to Clara and taking her hand in one fluid motion.

"Captain Jack Harkness." he said, kissing the back of her hand, "Do you know where the hell we are?"

Elijah spluttered.


	7. Dream or Reality?

**Sorry it's a short chapter, but I wanted to do something special for valentines day. Love you all**

**review:)**

He licked his lips as he surveyed the new batch of young faces his team brought in. They would be delightful test subjects. They had already been injected with the new test drug. They hadn't got in any of the rooms yet, somehow the ginger lady knew, but it was a matter of time.

He pressed another button, making cheery hotel music blast through every hall. He grinned to the sound of the cheery keys, his breath fogging up the screen as he pressed another button.

A carnivorous roar erupted next, and he watched with anticipation as they all leapt up from their comfortable seats, one man swinging a woman over his shoulder, and ran for it.

He laughed to himself, and his mirth echoed senselessly around the room, magnified by the reflective walls.

* * *

><p>He didn't care what Amy said, he threw open one of the doors and pulled himself and Clara inside, slamming the door shut to further insure their safety. Amy and Rory soon followed, and sadly Jack.<p>

Amy shrieked out at once, backing against the wall, her eyes staring at the angel statues that resided in the room. He frowned slightly at her fear, at first glance he supposed the angels could be considered frightening, but only when it was thrust upon you like someone jumping out and yelling boo. He quickly composed his gasp of fright, and stared curiously at Amy as she attempted to back even further in to wall, her eyes wide and terrified.

"Don't blink." she whispered, and he was getting slightly afraid of her.

"What do you mean, don't blink?" Clara laughed it off, reaching forward from her place in Elijah's arm to tap the arm of one of the statues. "They're just statues."

"Don't do that!" Amy practically shrieked, her eyes popping. Even Jack rolled her eyes.

"Amy, calm down." Rory laughs suddenly, "I bet that was just an audio recording."

"Yeah, of course." Elijah laughs to. Amy stared at him in horror. She wanted to grab him by that stupid bow tie and shake him back and forth. Couldn't he see? Where was he? The Doctor had to be in there somewhere. He just had to. The other's left the room, paying the statues no mind, but she gave them another wary glance.

_"Come along Pond please!"_ She gulps, and follows the others, cursing the world.

* * *

><p>The music stays, following the group around like some psychotic trance, even though the roars have stopped. Jack and Rory occasionally take peeks into the rooms bordering the long yellow halls, and either burst out laughing or pull back with a shudder. Elijah refused to give in to what he insisted was childish, but if he was being honest, it was because he would have to hand Clara over to Jack, and he would rather die than ever do that.<p>

Clara was getting rather fed up. She often complained of her stomach muscles hurting, from the constant pressure against his shoulder, but he paid her no mind. She wasn't heavy, and he rather liked the feeling of her long hair brushing slightly over the back of his neck, her breath on his upper back.

"When are we going to find the bloody exit?" she asked him, obviously rather annoyed, and he sighed.

"I don't know Clara, seeing as the doors and windows are both bordered up." he said to her patiently, even though he found his voice growing thin.

"Oh shut up." Amy groaned, her feet trudging against the carpet. "I had a new job today." she sighed, and he almost believed her for a second, that she actually cared about something, but he could still see through the careful facade she kept around herself.

"You'll get there." Rory assured her, but even his endless optimism was failing, and Elijah was growing tired of his continuous banter.

"Why don't I take the lovely Lady for a while?" Jack asked, stepping in front of Elijah and holding out his arms. Elijah ignored him, pushing past the broad shouldered man.

"Come on." Clara said, "I'm sure you're getting tired."

"We don't even know him." he pointed out to her as they turned into yet another hallway. "How big is this place?"

"This is it." she poked him in the arm, "That was the room my Mum and I always spent the night in." He peered at the worn white door, with it's brass numbers.

Before anyone could protest, he swung open the door, and pulled them both inside.

"What are you doing?" she lightly shrieked, as he set her down on the bed.  
>"Do you want to have... intercourse... with Jack?" he spluttered, locking the door behind them. Amy banged on it, "LOOK I'LL BE OUT IN A MINUTE!" he hollered through the door.<p>

"How is it any of your business?" she asked him, crossing her arms over her chest, her small face peering up at him with her lips screwed up.

"Because... he's a heartbreaker!"

"Don't go all country song on me." she said, rolling her eyes.

"I'm not... shut up!"he rubbed his palms against his eyes, making a rather exasperated sigh with his teeth. "I just... Don't want you to get hurt."

"Yeah? well that isn't up to you! You're not my boyfriend." she said, narrowing her eyes.

"I want to be." he blurted out. She watched his face turn red, but he didn't try to reclaim his words. He seemed to like it being said.. She raised her eyebrows in surprise, even though her heart was thudding in her chest, and she was having difficulty breathing.

"What?" she squeaked, her lack of oxygen making her voice high.

"I like you Clara." he stammered out, "And I meant to tell you earlier, but I didn't quite expect to get kidnapped and locked in a hotel. I even made reser-"

"Shut up Chin Boy." she said, and she realised she was crying, because no one had ever actually cared about her like this before.

"What?"

"Kiss me." It didn't take him long to cross the short distance between them, and for him t crush his lips against hers. She felt like she had lived a thousand lives just to get to this moment, just to feel his soft lips, which tasted slightly of the stale gum Rory had found in his pocket. She wished she could stand up, breach the height between them a little more evenly, but she couldn't, so she just pulled him down so he was kneeling in front of her, their heights finally even.

"Damn being careful about falling in love." he murmured against her lips, "Damn it all. I love you Clara." she only hesitated for the briefest moment, kissing him again.

"I love you too Chin Boy."


	8. Escape

**_You'll hate me at the beginning of the chapter, but hopefully I'll make up for it. Sorry If you get two updates, the last chapter had formatting issues I needed to address. _**

**Disclaimer: I do not own doctor who or any of it's characters.**

_"Clara."_

"Kiss me chin boy." she murmured, still caught in the brief flashes of the dream.

"What?" he squeaked, and her eyes flew open. She was sitting in one of the lobby chairs, with what she recognised as Elijah's coat wrapped around her. It smelled like home to her now, she realized as his familiar scent filled her nose. He smelled like apples. Apples and peppermint candy.

"Sorry!" she stammered, realising all too soon that had been a dream. She was incredibly frustrated right now with herself, for dreaming of that. She had sworn off love and kissing a long, long time ago, and it would do her no good to daydream of such things now. "I said kiss me.. Ronald!" she excused, and relaxed when she saw him nod.

Amy rolled her eyes. "It's not our fault you just dropped off when we were hiking around the hotel." Clara just sat up, ignoring her sarcastic friend, rubbing her eyes.

"Sorry." she murmured, feeling the heat rising to her cheeks. "Didn't sleep well last night."

"What afraid of the dark?" Amy scoffed, raising her eyebrows at Clara's sudden red color.

"No." she snapped before she could stop herself, "I was to busy thinking about how my Mum died ten years ago." turning back to Elijah, "Pick me up."

"What?"

"PICK ME UP CHIN BOY OR SO HELP ME-" He scooped her up easily and quickly, carrying her out of the lobby and into the hallway branching off. He set her against the opposite wall, before slumping down next to her.

"Sorry." she whispered, "I just needed to get out of there." he nodded slightly, but his eyes were far away. "What did you guys find?" she gestured limply around at the hallways. "Do we even have a chance?"

"Rory is optimistic as ever, but I don't know." he replied, "it certainly doesn't look good." She stared absentmindedly at the wall across from them, it's plain yellow door seemingly mocking her. It wanted her to open it, to look inside it's room, discover it's secrets.

"Have you opened anymore doors?" she asked him in a dreamy voice, knowing he wouldn't open any of them like Jack and Rory. He was smarter than that. He shook his head, and she limped over to the door, ignoring the jolts of pain in her ankle.

"Let's take a look." she said, more to prove something to herself. She wasn't afraid of anything. She shoved open the door, amid to his protests, and stepped inside.

She was only scared when the door slammed behind her. She whirled around, staggering back as the pain in her ankle flared. Falling down to her knees, she cried out for help.

"Clara?" her mother said from behind her. She slowly turned around, her eyes growing wider with each second she breathed.

"Mum?" she asked. The room was almost completely empty, the only thing was a hospital bed, the white sheets pulled up to her Mother's frail chin. Her Mother had dark circles underneath her eyes,her body skeletal and fragile, her hair splayed out on the pillow, just like it had been on the day she died. "Mum." she approached the bed with careful, hesitant footsteps, as if one loud step would make her vanish.

Her Mother turned towards her, but it wasn't her Mum anymore, it was Elijah, his eyes wide with terror as he reached out to her with shaky fingers.

"Clara." he whispered, "Help me."

"Elijah?"

"Clara," he sounded confused, but she couldn't understand why. "It's the Doctor."

"Doctor?" she mouthed the words, but no sound escaped her lips. Her eyes filled with tears as she fell to her knees. "No, no, you're Elijah."

"Clara." he urged her, "It's me. It's the monk, remember?"

"I'm breaking." she screamed suddenly. "Help me." she dropped to the ground as her brain suddenly exploded in pain.

"Clara?" she could hear his voice, but all she could see was white stars, dancing across her vision. What was happening? She felt the panic begin to rise in her throat, the suffocating anxiety nearly cutting off her words.

"DOCTOR!" she screamed, "Doctor, please-" but she didn't finish her sentence. There was no point to it now she saw, no point at all. No point in begging, or screaming, because he would take away her fear. He would take away her pain. He would come.

"Praise him." she whispered, "Praise him."

* * *

><p>"I'm going to see what's holding him up." Amy said, climbing to her feet. She pushed off Rory's helping hand, "I can manage on my own."<p>

The hallway was empty. She immediately felt a bolt of fear shoot through her chest. If this was the same hotel as before... They both could be lost, and she'd find their empty shells. She darted down a side hall, ginger hair flying out behind her, and ran into Elijah, quite literally.

Their foreheads collided with a large smack, and they both fell to the ground. He jumped up at once, his eyes darting around the room.

"Clara!" he gasped, "I can't find her. She went into a room, but now she's gon-" he was cut off by a large scream, unmistakably Clara's.

"DOCTOR! ELIJAH! DOCTOR!" she was screaming, her shrieks of pain echoing around the hotel. They both bolted towards the sound. Clara was sitting on the ground, gripping her head in her hands. She was shaking back and forth, her eyes wild.

"Clara." Elijah whispered, he knelt by her, and she immediately flinched away.

"No, no more." she sobbed, "Please, please help me. My head, it's so full." Amy knelt by her as well, her hand gripping the other girl's tightly.

She wasn't an idiot, she knew what was happening to Clara. The Doctor had once explained it to her, that certain things could bring out memories. She assumed that they had been injected with a drug when they came in, because this wasn't her world, because there weren't any aliens. This drug was reawakening Clara's memories, but not in the manor that Amy's had. It was killing her, killing Clara, she could see that, as the other girl's breaths slowed. Elijah was bolting towards the lobby, and she knew he thought Rory could fix her.

Amy raised her hand, and punched Clara in the face. Clara collapsed backwards, her breath escaping her in a whoosh, but everything else returned to normal as the brain went to sleep.

"Amy, are you alright?" Rory asked, helping her up. "What did you do to her?"

"I knocked her out. When we came here, we were injected with something," she explained, "I have a mark in my arm. It must have been why there was nightmares in the bedrooms. Clara's mind reacted badly to the drug. Closing her eyes slowed it's effects. We need to get her to a hospital." Elijah and Rory's mouths dropped open. Clearly they weren't expecting that from her. "I am smartish you know!" she protested at their looks.

Elijah scooped Clara into his arms, with more care than Amy had ever seen the Doctor express. Her head lolled lightly against his arm, her sleeping body far more peaceful now.

"Will she be in pain when she wakes?" he asked Amy softly as they contiuned into the hotel hallway.

"I don't know." she said truthfully. She wasn't the Doctor, she didn't have all the answers.

Jack only raised his eyebrows slightly when they traisped back into the lobby. He had stayed behind to see if anyone else would show up, and judging by the mugs clasped in his hands, he'd found the kitchen.

"Don't ask." Amy advised him, she'd already explained it once, and she wasn't going to again. "Have you seen if there is anyway out of here?"

"Not unless we break down the walls." he said, and went pale when he saw the serious look Amy gave him. "You're not actually considering that are you?" his american accent to her, at least in that moment, was rather comforting, it was something alien. Something not to be expected.

"We need to get her to a hospital." she shrugged.

"It would take at least three men with chairs.." Jack broke off. "Ah." he rubbed his face. "May I ask, why didn't we do this earlier?"

"I wanted to see something." Amy said, and it was true. She wanted to see if the Doctor would be reawakened the longer they stayed in the hotel, wanted to see if she could get her bow tie wearing idiot back.

"Well thanks Amy." Elijah said harshly, "now Clara may die because of your desperate need." he stalked across the room, and gripped a chair in his hand.

When they opened the door, as they had done before, a white wall blocked their path. Elijah felt all around it, before resting his head lightly against the stone. "There's no way." he said, whacking the white stone with his fist.

"Move aside." she said, and he frowned.

"Amy, there is no way-"

"Just move aside!"

He did, and she felt along the wall. "If," she began, "Well...We didn't get in here by teleport did we?" _not this time._ She added in her head. "So... there must be a..." she found the switch, and cried out in victory. "way out!" the wall began to groan, and slowly retreated into the wall.

* * *

><p>"I love you." Rory kept saying, over and over again, until she kissed him to shut him up. They all staggered out into the moonlight (Elijah carrying Clara) and she laughed. Laughed because it felt so good to be in the fresh air again.<p>

"You can't leave!" A wheezy voice called behind them. A frail old man, seized Rory and pressed a gun to his head. "You'll tell the police on me."

"Let him go!" Jack warned, but none of them had a weapon, nothing to defend themselves.

"Rory!"

"I can't let you go, or I'll get taken. They pay me wells, they do."

"Who pays you?" Elijah demanded, and for a second, Amy believed that he was the Doctor. It was clearly there, in his voice at least.

"The people who run this town." he snorted, "and this Ginger Lady know what I'm talking about, don't you darling?"

It only took Amy a second to decide. Seizing a rock from the ground she chucked it at his head, striking his temple, and making him fall back to the ground. "Rory!" she cried out, and flung herself at him.

* * *

><p>Elijah slowly turned his head slightly. His head was foggy, his eyes unfocused, but he still could see the unmistakable blur that was Clara. He immediately tried to throw himself towards him, but it merely scooted the bed he was lying on, so it was right next to hers.<p>

"Chin Boy?" she asked him, as his arm partly covered her face. He struggled to remove it from her skin, everything was foggy.

"Clara." he assured her with just her name.

"Where are we?" she asked him, settling her head in the crook of his arm.

"The hospital, I think." he slurred, staring around at the white blur that was everywhere.

"Good."

He felt up around his neck. "Something's missing! Something so important."

"What?" she sounded alarmed.

"My Bowtie! SOMEONE THERE'S A LOST BOW TIE!" he screamed.

"Calm down." His brother said pushing his bed away from Clara's. "They said drawing the drug out of their systems would make them weird." he said to someone, probably his girlfriend. Speaking of girlfriends...

"Clara." he said loudly.

"Yes, Chin Boy?"

"I really like you."

"In a lovey kissy way, or best friend?" that made him think for a minute.

"Both!" he proclaimed. "Will you go on a date with me?"

"Yes." she said without hesitation.

"Promise?"

"Pinky-promise."

He reached his hand across to her, and she took it. When he dropped off to sleep, the only thought he had was: _I'm going to marry this girl someday._


	9. Stay Strong

**This chapter was difficult.**

**But hopefully good. Special thanks to KnittingFamine as always because he's freaking amazing.**

Rose sighed with barely concealed annoyance. She decided, if she ever got married (something she was hoping was in her future for herself and John) she would not be putting as much effort into simply finding a nice dress, because Donna was driving her mad. They'd been at the bridal shop for hours, trying on different dresses. Donna had only dragged Rose out here because Rose was the closest thing to a friend she had, not many people liked her rude loud voice.

"I think I like this one." Donna proclaimed, twirling around in a dress that looked exactly like every single thing she'd tried on in the last three hours.

"Great! Let's buy it!" Rose jumped on her slightest comment. She just wanted to get home. She honestly wished she could go and join Clara and Elijah with their weekly coffee.

Donna bit her lip. "What do you think?"

"I think it's perfect!" Rose exaggerated, practically pulling Donna to the register and having her pay for the dress.

* * *

><p>Clara rather liked to get coffee with Elijah. Since leaving that dreaded hotel, they had a rather fixed habit of going to the small shop down the road every Sunday, something Rose and John teased them about endlessly. The shop was almost always deserted, and for that they were both eternally grateful.<p>

It didn't take them long to reach the cafe from his house, and she slid carefully slid into the booth, smiling up at Elijah as he left to get coffee. She felt her fingers nervously tapping on the laminated table top.

Her eyes nervously flickered around the room, her foot now tapping along with her fingers, her lips being pummeled by her gnawing teeth, and she figured out why.

Donna's fiancee was in this cafe with them, and he was with another woman. Her eyes widened and her feet and fingers stopped their rapid dance, as she watched the taken man press a kiss to the neck of a woman who sure as hell wasn't Donna.

"Careful, it's hot." Elijah blew off the steam rising from their mugs as he drew closer, trying to move his clumsy limbs in a way that wouldn't end up with the coffee all over Clara and himself. Clara nearly yanked him down into the chair across from him, yanked the mug from his hand, and pretended to gracefully take a sip of coffee while she gestured with her eyebrows for him to look over there. He did, and nearly spat out his coffee when he turned back to Clara.

"What the hell?" he spluttered, rather alarmed, "he's getting married next week!"

"I think we both know that. No need to shout!" she hissed, as Donna's fiance looked their way. "Kiss me!"

"What?"

"Just do it!" he leaned over, and pressed his lips against hers. She pretended to lean into the kiss, even though she was actually rather enjoying herself. It was funny to see how easily he played along, how simple it was for him to pretend to love her.

She pulled away, her eyes darting over to where Donna's fiancee sat. He seemed to have accepted that they weren't paying attention to him at all, and was now snogging the obviously older woman with a passion.

"We need to fix this." she decided at once, grabbing his hand and pulling him out of the cafe.

"Clara!" he protested, stopping short and pulling her to a stop. She looked up at him in confusion, her eyebrows pulling slightly together. "why did you kiss me?" he seemed to be searching her eyes for the answer, but all she felt was confusion.

"He was looking our way!" she shrugged, "It was the smartest thing to do." she didn't expect his face to shut down, going devoid of emotion.

"Smartest." he echoed, but his lips slipped around the words like they were marbles.

"Yeah." she gave another tug on his hand, "Come on!" he shook himself.

"Yeah." he repeated, and darted after her.

* * *

><p>"Clara. You. Are. Insane." Rose said clearly from the other end. "Lance is the most faithful guy I know."<p>

"Why aren't you listening?" she whispered angrily into the phone, arranging her arms so they weren't scratching against the grass.

"Why are you whispering?"

"Because Elijah and I are following Lance. Got to go!" she slipped the phone back into her phone, ignoring Rose's protests.

"Why are we doing this again? You don't even like Donna." he pointed out to her, and she shot him a glare.

"Because it's the right thing to do!" she pointed out, "And if she found out about this years later... what if they had kids?" he sighed, and scooted up to her. They were on the edge of town, lying on their stomachs in front of an old house thought to be abandoned. He wasn't quite sure how Clara expected to call this guy out, but didn't question her motives.

"Kids changes everything." he agreed, pushing himself up on to his elbows, and sighing out of his mouth.

"It so does, doesn't it?" a cold female voice said from behind them. Clara straightened up and was on her feet in less than a second, whirling around. Lance and the woman were behind them, and from up close, the woman was very beautiful. Beautiful, but deadly.

"Why in the world were you following us?" the woman began to approach Clara, but even as she got closer and closer, Clara stayed her ground. "Talk." she said, gripping Clara's chin and forcing her head up. "Or it could very ugly, very quick." Clara simply glared.

"Let her go." Elijah demanded, and suddenly he was stepping in between Clara and the woman. "I dragged her out her, she knows only what she was paid." As she saw the suspension forming in the older woman's eyes, Clara suddenly understood that this was much more than an affair, this was something far darker.

"No, he's lying." she protested, not about to let him take the fall.

"Don't be silly." Elijah burst out, "Of course I'm not. She knows nothing. All she was supposed to do was keep lookout. She thinks it's just about an affair." he lied quickly, and before Clara could protest, Lance seized her by the upper arms, and dragged her back down the road.

"ELIJAH!" she screamed, trying to tear her way out of Lance's sickening grasp. "ELIJAH! DOCTOR!" the last word out of her mouth was a mistake, and she closed her mouth rather suddenly, feeling the comfortable way the word fit in her mouth. What was that about? Before she could protest further, she was hit over the head with a large rock.

* * *

><p>She hated herself. She staggered towards the lights of town, one boot missing, tears running freely from her eyes and streaming down her face. She was limping freely now, her foot bleeding on to the stones of the road, and she screamed frantically when she saw a car pulling down the road.<p>

"HELP!" she screamed, jumping in front the headlights. The tires of the car screeched, and the car halted to a stop. "Please, help me." she cried, "My best friend, he was kidnapped. Please." she was sobbing now, as someone pulled her into the car.

Somehow her face found a shoulder, and she clutched it like a newborn, her sobs from earlier returning now in the heat of the moment. This person, smelled like fish fingers and custard for whatever reason, but that was more comforting to her than anything.

"This isn't me." his whisper reached her, and she looked up, confusion evident on her face.

"Elijah?" she whispered.

"No." he said, "I'm your imaginary friend that's actually quite real." Her eyebrows furrowed, her mouth opening in surprise.

"Who are you?" she demanded, moving away from him in surprise. "You're not Elijah, and I'm not making you up."

"My Clara." he said fondly, "This world is centered around you. Not me, because it can't work like that. They can't trap a Time Lord into his own mind, but trap him in a human mind, and he can't seem to find a way out. This whole world is centered around your brain. They had to choose one of my companions brains to model this simulation around, and what better brain than yours?" he seemed to be explaining something to himself more than to her.

"My brain?" she said slowly, and allowed herself another few inches apart from him.

"Not your brain directly," he sighed. "My Clara." he repeated, seeming to enjoy the taste of the words on his lips. "If only you could remeber me."

"Who are you, if you're not Elijah?" she demanded, her hand lightly resting against the door handle of the car. Surely his lanky limbs would slow him down if she tried to run for it.

"The Doctor." he said softly, and he seemed very distressed about the fearful look in her eyes, her body tensed to run. He leaned forward, ignoring her flinch back, and pressed his fingertips to her temples. "You won't remember this, but stay strong my Impossible Girl."

* * *

><p>Amy's scream was muffled by a hand. She sat up immediately, her arms and legs flailing, trying to hit at her attacker, but the person dodged her attacks as swiftly and carefully as Rory or the Doctor had learned to do.<p>

"What the hell Rory?" she whispered, because it wasn't the Doctor certainly, come to wake her for another adventure, like he used to in the olden days, with an excited whisper and many hand gestures.

"Hush, Amelia." Elijah, or who she assumed was Elijah, whispered.

"Elijah?" she said in bewilderment, her blurry sleep-filled eyes trying to focus on the figure standing to her left, his hand nervously curled around the edge of the couch. Amy soon realised that she'd fallen asleep waiting for Rory to get home, and that he must have been too tired to carry her to their bed, judging by the blanket once wrapped lovingly around her, now in a scattered heap at her feet, thrown to the floor by her violent kicking.

"No." he said, "Doctor." he seemed exhausted as he sank down next to her, and she rubbed her eyes to get a better look.

"Doctor who?" she asked warily, eyes narrowing slightly. This could all be a trick, she reminded herself.

"When would I ever tell you?" he shot back, and she threw her arms around him. She soon realised she was crying, as he held her close, and she hated crying. She'd cried enough when she was a girl, begging for her Aunt to pay some attention to her. Of course, now that Aunt was just a distant relative (thanks to the crack) , but she still had the memories.

"Doctor." she whispered, "Is that really you?"

"I swear it on fish fingers and custard." he whispered back, and she clutched him tighter once again, her head resting in the crook of his shoulder. It had not been a happy day, the day she left him. She'd stumbled upon landing in New York in 1938, her foot catching on a rock and causing her to fall to the ground. She hadn't gotten up, there was no sight of Rory, and despair was kicking in. She still remembered the terrible thought that it was all for nothing, he was gone anyways, and remembered resting her forehead against the ground where the Doctor was surely standing the future, perhaps sobbing over the fact she was gone. She had cried then, tears smearing her makeup which wasn't known to the world, and grave dirt staining her clothes.

She had found Rory a day later, but had soon realised that the angel had sent her back five years after him. He had looked upon her with tears of joy, his voice a shout that turned heads from all around, and a little boy clinging to his knee.

Anthony Williams was a three year old boy that Rory had adopted, and Amy soon filled the role of the little boy's Mother. She was there at his wedding, throughout his whole life, and he was there to care for her when Rory died five years before her. He was the one holding her hand when she passed on, his eyes watery, and she'd smiled up at him, babbling on about adventures with a man in a box, as she called him "Doctor", getting confused again as she did many times.

She clutched to that stupid Time Lord now, the only remnant of what she realised had been a perfect life, and didn't even care that she was getting snot and tears on his tweed.

"My Pond." he said fondly, pulling back a little bit. His eyes were brighter, she noticed immediately, like they had been when she first met him His smile was genuine, as he surveyed her, pressing a light kiss to her forehead. "I can't stay."

"Why not?" she demanded sharply, all traces of the previous happiness had suddenly deserted her with those three words.

"Because, they'll bring back Elijah soon." seeing her mouth open in question, he jammed his finger into her lips like he always used too do, silencing her never existing question. "I'm only here because someone killed Elijah."he kept his finger pressed firmly to her lips as she let out a soft gasp. "But they're going to bring him back as soon as they catch me."

"Then we'll hide you!" she said, pushing away the finger and staring him down with the usual fiery look.

"I'm not here Amy." he said patiently, "I'm in the real world, but right now I'm controlling the simulation."

"How do you mean?"

"There's a large chair, that controls this entire world, and I'm sitting in it."

"Why don't you wake everyone up than?" she asked, raising her eyebrows as well as her voice, determined to make him see reason.

"The alarms are blaring." he replied, "I knocked out two of the scientists stationed in the rooms where they've kept us... but I can hear the guards trying to get through the boundary's I've set up. It would take days to hack this, and even then not everyone would wake up, and I couldn't condemn anyone to an endless sleep."

"Then what do you want me to do?" she asked despratly, her hands automatically going to yank his bow tie. He sheltered the small bit of cloth from her, but smiled at the familiarty of those actions.

"Make Clara remember." he told her simply, and she frowned.

"Why can't I make Elijah Smith remember?" she protested, her eyebrows furrowing, and her lips pursing.

"Clara's brain is already weakened by the amount of memories she has. She has had a thousand lives, and right now they're all pressing against the barrior they have put in her mind, so that the slightest things, such as the drug from the hotel, are pushing it to a breaking point. Elijah doesn't have that."

"What could Clara do that I couldn't?"

"She's special. She's such a large part of my life, as large as myself, that only she could reach those parts of my minds, No-" he said, stopping Amy's furious look, "It's to complicated to explain, and I can't do it just now."

"But-" she struggled to find the right words, "Elijah is falling in love with Clara!" For the first time, he looked completely at a lost, and sighing, he put his face into his palms, breathing a long sad sigh.

"Oh, my Pond." he said simply, "I did that a long time ago."

"What about River?"

"What about River." he lifted his face from his hands, and she saw that his eyes were hard now. "She's dead Amy." he said harshly, "and I said goodbye. She left me when I needed her most and-" he broke off, his voice a sudden sob. "She broke my heart okay? And don't give me that satisfied look, because I needed her Clara. And she left me. It was all, 'only one psychopath per TARDIS, and I just-" she stopped him.

"Alright." she said, "So you love Clara?" seeming unsure of himself, he nodded.

"I do." he said, hesitant, "I do!" he said more firmly, a smile spreading across his face.

"Good." she said, "I'm glad you do Raggedy Man, but I can't say I'm not that sad that she crushed your heart like a proper Pond."

"Oi!" he said lightly, but poked her. "I'm going to have to go now.." he broke off, "Remember Amelia," he cupped her face with his palm, "my life in your hands, Amelia Pond."

And then he was gone.

* * *

><p>It was hours later when they found him, Elijah, passed out, and his captors were taken to jail. Clara pelted full speed towards the crime scene, despite Rose trying to hold her back, because she needed to see that he was okay with her own eyes.<p>

He was awake, a shock blanket wrapped around his shoulders and she threw her arms around him with a resounded sob, burying her face into his shoulder.

"Elijah." she sobbed in relief, "Don't ever do that again." None of them noticed Amy standing behind them, staring at Elijah with a newfound appreciation. Amy turned away, a grin spreading across her face.

Things were about to get real. She thought to herself with a grim smile.

* * *

><p><em>"The TimeLord could have escaped!" he roared, and his hand cracked across her face, making her wince in pain.<em>

_"Good." she spat, and this time didn't dodge the knife that was heading for her gut._


	10. A Red Love

Attention! This has some Father issues in it and if that triggers something bad in you don't read this chapter, just the note at the end.

Um. Well this turned out to be a whopping 5,000 words, which is the longest chapter I have _ever_ posted in the history of my writing, and I hope it makes up for all the short ones lately.

Review:)

* * *

><p>He heard her scream, and he was out of his bed in a second. He would know that scream from a mile away. He couldn't move faster, his feet thudding against the smooth floors into her bedroom. She was writhing, screaming, her covers tangled around her legs, but nobody was physically hurting her. He knelt down next to her sleeping form, and gently shook her awake.<p>

"Clara," Elijah whispered, "Hey, Clara. It's okay, you're okay." he promised her, as her terrified eyes found his. He had never seen her so out of control, her limbs shaking, tears trailing down her face. Her brown curls were in a rats nest around her head, and she looked so hopeless, so lost, he didn't think, he acted.

He pulled her into him, crushing her small body against his. She buried her face in his shoulder with a newfound desperation, her small face shaking into his T-shirt. She seemed like she was breaking apart, and he strived to know why so he could fix it. He realised that he couldn't let anything happen to her. Not his Impossible Girl. Not his Clara. He had to fix this, whatever was causing her such pain, such depression. He hated seeing her in pain, hated it with all his heart.

"Please don't leave me." she begged him, pulling a fraction away with a sniffle, tears dripping down her face as her eyes pleaded with him. His hand automatically wiped away the tears, rubbing comforting circles into her cheek.

"Never." he promised, and then, carefully, he eased her back against the plump pillows. He'd picked this room for her for this reason, because it was the most comfortable, the best. It had been almost two months since the souffle fire, and Rose and Clara had moved in with them permanently.

"Then stay here." she begged him, and he obediently sank down next to her, laying rather awkwardly on the opposite pillow. Clara wasn't buying this though, she scooched over to where he lay, resting her head on his shoulder, and he carefully put his arm around her small shoulders, drawing her nearer. She smelled like Clara, his Clara, and he couldn't help but feel at peace as he sank back down into slumber.

* * *

><p>He raised his fist and knocked loudly on the door. It was late at night, but if he knew his son, he would be awake until very late. John answered almost immediately, his glasses on his nose, and his hair rumpled effectively. He had that look on that Gallifrey sometimes got, the far away spacey look that his mind was elsewhere. His eyes focused on his Dad though, and he watched his eye brows draw together.<p>

"I need a place to stay." he rasped out. He wouldn't have come here again, he didn't spend much time in the same place, but he figured it would be best to see John again. He'd left rather quietly last time, as Elijah and that woman were in the hospital, because he didn't want to cause a fuss. Not over Elijah anyways.

"Of course." John said quickly, moving aside to let his Dad through, "Let me show you to a room." His son clearly didn't want him wandering about the house, he wondered what stupid thing Elijah had pulled this time. Elijah was always doing foolish things like that.

* * *

><p>The first thing Clara noticed when she woke up was that her nose was pressed into a shoulder. A familiar shoulder that she recognised at once, because it was warm and had that delightful scent of apples and cinnamon. That was also why her eyes flew open in shock. Why was she sleeping next to <em>Elijah?<em>

The answer came to her at once, the memories from their last night encounter slowly flooding back to her, but only in brief flashes like it was all a dream. She felt her cheeks slowly turn red as she remembered the way she clung to him, begged him to stay. She must have looked like a puppy needing to be loved. Not that anything of that sort had happened. She figured it was best to let him sleep, than to wake him up and be forced to exchange explanations. She tried to free herself, as it seemed to be the best thing to do, but his arms were like a cage around her. Protecting her from the unknown, she supposed.

She gave up and instead, looked at him. It was the first time, she figured, she could look at him without some cocky excuse thrown at her, and she was grateful.

His chin really was rather large, she realised. It fit his face though, and she couldn't imagine him without it. His hair wasn't styled to curl to one side, she realised, it just did that naturally. His brow was furrowed, but he didn't have any eyebrows. Altogether, she thought he was the prettiest man he had ever seen, and... he was looking right at her.

She flinched backwards automatically, and he let out a slight chuckle, as he turned over, groaning.

"You had to wake me up with your staring." he complained, rubbing his eyes with his palms. She watched him as he slowly regestered their surroundings. He glanced down at her, and then blushed. "Sorry, I- good morning." he said, unsure of himself all the sudden, as his brain freed itself from it's sleepy haze.

"Good morning." she responded robotically, picking at the covers with a fingernail. They exchanged a few more awkward comments, and Clara honestly wanted to throw her head under the covers. What do you say to a person after you slept in their arms all night? She was at a complete loss. "I'm sorry... about last night." she finally said, avoiding his eyes. "I haven't had a nightmare since I moved here... I don't know what came over me."

"You're fine." he assured her, not meeting her eyes either. A silence fell over them again, and Clara wracked her brains for something to say. This wasn't their comfortable silences of the walks to the coffee shop, where she didn't feel the need to say anything. This was full with things the other needed to say, and it made everything very, very uncomfortable.

"What was the nightmare about?" he asked her, his voice coming out in a rush, it took her a second to decipher what he had said.

"I was scared." she said, her eyes now distant. "I didn't know where I was." she shook herself. The dream only came back to her in brief flashes, her frantic screams of "Where am I?" faded and distorted. And pain. So much pain, and it hurt so very very badly.

"Do you know now?" he asked her, and it sounded like an odd question to ask, but strangely, it was the only thing she needed him to say.

"I think so, yeah." she nodded, and gave him a watery smile. She realised how very nice it felt to wake up and see his face, to feel his strong arms giving her their support. He leaned closer to her, and she couldn't help but lean in a little more, wanting suddenly to kiss him. Her nose was almost touching his, and she held her breath.

"John!" A gruff voice yelled. "This is not the-"

In a split second, Clara and Elijah sprang apart, moving to opposite ends of the bed. Clara cheeks were burning red as she recognized Elijah's Dad's gruff face, his eyebrows pulled up slightly in shock. It didn't last long though. "Typical Elijah." he muttered, sliding out of the room without so much as a 'Sorry'.

* * *

><p><em>Amy's List of Things to Do<em>

_1. Get Clara to remember._

_2. Get her to make the Doctor remember._

_3. Have him figure out things, wave his sonic screwdriver around._

_4. Live happily ever after._

Amy hesitated, before deleting the last bit, her brow furrowed. She didn't believe in happy endings. Not anymore, anyways.

"Amy-" Rory said from behind her and she whirled around, slamming the laptop shut before he could see the page she had pulled up. Rory didn't even look up from the mail he was inspecting. "Where are my scrubs?"

"In the kitchen, where you left them." she said, rolling her eyes.

"You better get going, don't want to be late." he popped his head around the doorframe, his eyes twinkling. She walked over to where he stood and pressed a quick kiss to his lips, grinning slightly.

"Maybe." she said, grabbing her jacket. "Aren't they supposed to wait on the model?" Rory chuckled, but she was already out the door, stuffing her laptop in her bag, and pulling up her hood to protect her hair from the rain which poured down.

* * *

><p>Elijah fiddled with the grass at the lakes edge, a umbrella over his head and a blanket under his bottom, his hands trembling slightly as he replayed the events from this morning over and over in his head. <em>Typical Elijah<em>. He was consistent enough to be typical was he? Did Clara think of him that way? Did she think he was so typical that he was impossible to be loved? She had seemed to want to kiss him this morning, but he was he just kidding himself?

"Elijah?" John asked him, sinking down next to him in the grass. Elijah simply glared with more passion towards the lake, expecting a lecture. "Why were you in Clara's room?" Elijah rolled his eyes.

"You know, I'm not a bad person." he said, not even glancing in his brother's direction. He could feel the disapproving thoughts radiating out. "Just in case you were wondering."

"So you did sleep with her." John amended, "Well done." That was not was he was expecting.

"No!" Elijah protested, "Is that all you're good for? You seriously have the thoughts of every single other man on this planet."

"So you didn't sleep with her."

"No, she was having a nightmare, so I stayed with her. Like Peeta did for Katniss in Catching Fire." _and I mean, it's not like we were going to our death but..._

_(the next line is a spoiler from Mockingjay so just go to the Do me a favor bit if you haven't read it and want to.)_

"They ended up married." John pointed out.

"Do me a favor? Shut up!" he said harshly, and John looked at him in surprise. Normally this would turn into a jostling of shoulders and a laugh. Not Elijah glaring into the distance with strong 'leave me alone or I'll kill you vibe.'

"Is this about Clara, or Dad?" John asked him, his older brother softness coming back in the heat of the moment.

"Neither."

"Ah, so it's both " John said wisely, "Do you like her?"

"No!" he said to quickly, "No, not at all. I mean she's great, and we're friends but imagine me and her snogging! My chin would get in the way, and her nose would barely brush against mine, and she'd have to get a step stool."

"So you do like her?"

"Oh, John," he said, giving in, "If only the simple word _like_ could be used to describe Clara Oswald." he looked at his brother sharply, "Why do you care so much?"

"I'm going to propose to Rose." his brother admitted, "And I don't want you to be alone."

"Congratulations." Elijah said, turning away from him. Seeing their conversation was over, John got up to leave.

"I can get Dad to leave." he said.

"No need." Elijah responded, and his eyes were far away.

* * *

><p>Clara lightly rolled behind Rose on the cart, her eyes unfocused as her friend picked over the selection of canned soups they had on display, wondering if she really did want to kiss Elijah Smith. It would make some sense, if she loved him, her heart did beat faster everytime he took her hand, it thudded when he smiled she automatically smiled back, made it go crazy when... well basically everything about him. Was she in love?<p>

"John told me that his Dad found you and Elijah in bed together." Rose said nonchalantly, picking out a nice looking tomato soup, only slightly glancing over in her friends direction.

"Nothing happened." Clara quickly excused, "I had a nightmare again, and he was there. End of story." she didn't mention the almost kiss, or the way she woke up with his arms wrapped firmly around her, the fact she didn't mind it.

"I believe you." Rose shrugged, tossing the can in the cart. "Do you love him?" Clara looked at her in alarm.

"What?" she squawked, looking in alarm at her friend.

"You heard what I said." Rose leaned against the other end of the cart, her eyes narrowing at her friend. "So answer the question."

"I don't know!" she lied, and Rose glared. "Okay, maybe." she bit her lip. "What do you think we should do about the dad?" she quickly changed the subject, hoping to distract Rose from the truth she just sort of admitted.

"Don't change the subject." Rose said, but when she got no other responses from the shorter girl, she sighed, her bangs blowing out in front of her. "I don't know," she admitted, "He seems perfectly nice to me and John."

"But whenever it comes to Elijah he's an ass." Clara said, puzzled.

"Oh no." Rose groaned, "You've got your thinking face on. I hate that face."

"It's better than your thinking face, when you go and get drunk shortly after."

"OI!"

* * *

><p>Elijah didn't often drive, but when he did he rode a motorbike. Something about sitting on it with his coat flapping in the wind, a bowtie on his neck, and a helmet and safety goggles crammed onto his head made him feel so <em>cool<em>. He pulled up to the Pond's house in a flourish, whipping off his goggles and parking his bike.

He walked up to the door and rapped on it four times, grinning to himself all the while. Rory would know the answers. The future must know a thing or two about romantics to woo a girl like Amy.

Rory answered almost immediately, a toothbrush propped in his mouth. He took it out for a second, and held up a finger. Elijah took that as a welcoming to come and walked inside. Rory cleared his mouth of toothpaste.

"You missed her." Rory said, "Amy. She left for her new job."

"I came to see you!" Elijah replied, clapping his hand. "I need your help." he failed to notice the way Rory went a little pale at the word _help_.

"What with?" he asked, and Elijah, again, failed to notice the tremor in Rory's voice.

"Love advice." he said, and Rory immediately relaxed. "How did you tell Amy you loved her?"

"It was a bit of an accident really." Rory explained, "she thought I was gay and said so, I said I wasn't, and she put together the pieces." Elijah sighed, and knocked his head against his knees.

"How should I do it then?"

"Can't you just be like any other normal person and actually ask her on a date first?"

"Dates are not cool." he said rapping Rory on the nose, "Remember that."

* * *

><p>Clara had taken care to make sure the house was deserted before she snooped. It was for everyone's better interests she decided, that she try to mend the bonds between Elijah and his Dad. She couldn't stand the inferior way he treated him, the scowls and muttered assumptions. That was why she had searched the house for around an hour before she found the attic, and she coughed loudly when she crawled into the enclosed space.<p>

She grinned at what she saw though. She figured that every house had its secret storage unit, and this was it. Cardboard boxes were piled everywhere, whether from moving laziness or memories meant to be packed up and forgotten. She wondered how, in her months of living here, that she had never noticed this room.

Coughing slightly, she flipped open a box. The contents was filled with broken pots, and she slammed it shut when a spider began to creep out of the shards. Not there then. She opened and closed about fifteen more boxes, finding anything from dolls to long scarves, before she found the box she was looking for.

It only contained one item, a leather photo album, and she pulled the heavy book out with a grunting heave, it's pages laden with dust.

She coughed from the dust spewing from it's pages, her hand going to her chest as it heaved. Clearing away the remaining dust with her fingers, she peered down at the page, hoping to find something worth her time.

It was to Elijah, from River, and the first page was their wedding pictures. River was a lovely woman she thought, with very big hair that radiated outwards as if she had been wearing a space helmet all day. She wasn't wearing a dress, but a pantsuit, her smile large as she stood next to Elijah looking very... ahem... sexy in his black tuxedo.

The next page was of John and a ginger woman, her face pressed cheerfully against his, but she thought he looked rather flustered and annoyed.

She caught her first look at Elijah's mother when she turned the page, and she had to admit she was very lovely. She had orange hair, and eyes that shone like two suns, she was hugging Elijah, pressing her lips to his forehead, seemingly happy to be there.

Clara shut the book with a snap, and placed it back in the box, suddenly feeling very guilty for snooping around, even it was to help Elijah. She would have to try different methods. Wiping the dust off her skirt, she decided to go and talk to John.

* * *

><p>Elijah walked nervously into the flower shop, wiping his sweaty palms on his jeans. He didn't even know there was a flower shop in town before he drove by it, and stopped to buy some flowers. That was what people did in books at least, he thought. He'd read many books in his day, that was all he did before he met Clara. It was still a lot of what he did.<p>

But no books could tell him how to tell Clara Oswald, one of the most amazing girls in history, how much he loved her.

The real reason he didn't ask her out on a date like any normal sane person, was because that was how he did it with River, and it didn't end well with her. No, he didn't want any date with Clara to be tainted with memories of his first date with River, so he might as well get it off his chest about how he felt about her. How he felt about the girl with the cute nose and large eyes, about the way she cared about the students she taught, about the way she kissed him on the corner of his mouth when he was sad.

"Um..." he asked the clerk at the desk, "What kind of flowers are good for telling someone you love them?"

"Getting engaged are we?" she asked him warmly, and he shook his head.

"No!" he said, blushing, "We haven't even kissed yet, I just need some romantic flowers."

"So a first date then?"

"No."

She looked exasperated. "Try sunflowers why don't you." she barked, and he grinned.

"Thank you!" he kissed her on both cheeks, paid for the flowers, and left.

* * *

><p>Clara strolled into John's office, paying no mind to the frantic protests from Rose, slamming the door shut behind her.<p>

"I need answers." she demanded, plopping herself down in the hard wooden chair before his desk, narrowing her eyes. "Why does your Dad hate Elijah?"

"Aren't you supposed to be at work?" John asked delicately, raising his eyebrows a fraction.

"It's a school holiday." she said, rolling her eyes. "Any idiot knows that." She sat up straighter, her arms crossed over her chest. "Don't try to change the subject. Why?"

"Surely you have some papers to grade or something." he pressed on, avoiding the subject at hand.

"If you don't tell me right now, I'll tell Rose about your engagement plans." she felt a twinge of guilt at those words, especially when his face turned white.

"Fine." he said, closing his eyes. "Listen, my Dad hates Elijah because Elijah blames himself for our Mother's death."

"So it wasn't his fault?" she asked softly, and suddenly everything seemed much to loud. She could feel him, feel Elijah's pain for the last year, feel every single person he'd pushed away, every single day he blamed himself, all for nothing.

"No. It was my Dad's fault. He made her make him some more eggs, and while she was doing that, the oil spilled and exploded. She died because he treated her like shit." his voice was as hard as his eyes. "And then Elijah came in with the news he was getting a divorce, and the my Father let him believe everything was his fault."

"Why didn't you tell him?" she yelled, and he mimed for her to be quiet. "No." she said, "No. You don't know do you? That's why you avoid him, because you've been lying to him for the past year! He's probably hated himself every day and it's your fault." John seemed to shrink.

"I only found out last night," he said quietly, "And I had every intention of telling Elijah this morning, but he wasn't in his bed."

She closed her eyes.

"My Dad's leaving tonight, and he's not coming back." John assured her, "I promise Clara." she just shook her head and left, because she couldn't believe someone could do that.

* * *

><p>"What was that about?" Rose asked, propping herself on the desk. "I could hear Clara yelling."<p>

"I'll tell you later." John excused, and Rose shrugged. "What did you find?"

"Well she definitely likes him."

"He likes her."

"So what do we do?"

* * *

><p>Clara walked into the dining room, and tried to decide how to tell Elijah the news. His Dad should be gone, and she didn't want her Chin Boy to feel that way any longer. His eyes were so much older than they should be, and he should be much more comfortable with himself and the people around him then he was.<p>

She did not expect what she found in the room, and her mouth dropped. Rose and John were nowhere in sight, and the lighting was low, a bouquet of roses in the middle of the table. Wine glasses and an elaborate dinner was on the table before them, completing the romantic cheesy look. She had to stifle a laugh at it all, and the best part, by far, was Elijah.

He looked like someone had dragged him here, and he sat looking very dejected with a bouquet of sunflowers in his lap.

"Did you plan this?" she asked him, taking her seat across from him. He shook his head, sighing.

"No. I believe Rose and John are behind it."

She let out a nervous giggle, afraid to meet his eyes in case she said something stupid. Sometimes she really hated Rose. Way to make things awkward. She was never telling that woman anything ever again. "So they want us to kiss that badly then.." she joked, and he laughed too.

"Pair of Cupids." he said, and grinned. "At least we get good free food."

"It's all about the food." She replied, in a very serious tone, before dissolving into laughter again. She had no idea if he wanted to kiss her as badly as she wanted to kiss him right now, but she was about ready to just kiss him. She vaguely wondered if he had told John about his feelings for her, if he actually maybe loved her?

"I would so kill Rose if they weren't about to get engaged." Clara shook her head, and stabbed at her bit of chicken.

"So you think she'll say yes?" he asked her, and she nodded.

"Never seen her look at anyone like that before." she said rather wistfully. "So Chin Boy... When's your birthday?" he gave her a quiet smile.

"November 23rd." he answered. "Yours?"

"April 12th."

"Okay that's no fair!" he protested, "You didn't tell me until the week before?" she shrugged.

"Didn't think it mattered much. Favorite color?"

"Blue. What do you mean it doesn't matter?"

"Birthday's just... Not a single one of them has ended well." she said, "I have birthday bad luck. My favorite color is red by the way."

"Red. Why red?"

"It symbolises life." She had never really thought to closely about it, "Not death or evil like most people think. Red is blood, the heart, the color of love." she waved her fork around importantly.

"Favorite food?" he quizzed her.

"Souffles." she answered, "Let me guess yours... fish fingers and custard?"

"You read my mind woman!" he waggled a finger at her in accusation.

"Um...Favorite movie?"

"Lord of the Rings, the Two Towers."

"Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. But I must say, I do like that movie. Legolas is after my heart."

"Legolas? I must have a talk with that heart stealing elf." he said, and she couldn't help but spit out the gulp of water she just took in laughter. They went on like this for a bit, and Clara couldn't help but have a grin that stretched from ear to ear as he told her some of the stupider adventures of his childhood, how he met River, who his first girlfriend was.

"John, I must talk to you-" Elijah's Dad burst into the room, and Clara and Elijah both jumped. When his eyes rested on their setting, his mouth furrowed into a frown.

"What the hell is this?" he asked.

"A date." Clara said before Elijah could respond. "We do live here you know."

"I'm surprised you like him." he said, "Elijah is a bit dumb." that was when Clara snapped. No man, no matter how bruised by his past, should call their son stupid.

"Now you listen here." she said, her voice hard and angry, as she pushed up from the table. "You're out of line. You think you can just barge in here and not even say sorry! We were having a lovely sodding time before you showed up with your 'I'm to cool to care about anyone else' attitude! Maybe if you got past the fact that you're a complete asshole, maybe you could actually be decent! BUT INSTEAD YOU HAVE TO SHOW UP AND RUIN EVERYTHING! WHY CAN'T YOU JUST BE A NICE DAD, AND MAYBE WANT TO INTRODUCE YOURSELF TO THE GIRL WHO'S IN LOVE WITH YOUR SON!" she realised what she had said as soon as it left her mouth, and clapped a hand over her lips. She'd always had a rather bossy temper, but that was information that should not have passed her lips just yet.

Realising that both men were staring at her, she bolted, flying out of the house and down the path to the lake.

"Elijah-" his dad began, but Elijah looked up at him in desperation. "We can talk later." his Dad finished, and he was gone, running down the path after Clara.

* * *

><p>She was sitting on the beach of TARDIS lake, her knees pulled up to her chest and the wind making her hair sway in the breeze. Her shoes were cast to the side, and her toes lightly lapped at the water. He came up next to her, and she drew her feet out of the water, folding them underneath her.<p>

"Hey." he said.

"Hi." she whispered. "why do you let him push over you like that?" she asked, just as soft as him.

"He's always favored John. My Mum just told me to keep quiet."

"That's rubbish. I went looking today, and it seems like he treated her the same way she treated you." there was a slight pause as she seemed to collect her thoughts. "You didn't hurt her you know." she said, "It wasn't you."

"Thank you." he used the same voice as her, soft and gentle. "Why did you go looking?"

"I think I pretty much just said why amongst all the shouting." she didn't take her eyes off the moon. "And I don't want you to be sad anymore."

"Thank you again." he said, "I guess that's all I can say."

"What were you doing today?" she asked him, and he can feel his cheeks turn red from the reality of the question. "Come on." she nudged him, "I told you about what I did."

"I was talking to Rory." it wasn't a lie, he rationalized, not at all.

"About what?"

"How to tell someone you love them." he said in a rush, because he wasn't sure he would be able to get the words out in the first place.

"Well... It depends of the person I suppose." she said, and he glanced down at her. She was looking at him now, her eyes very wide and very brown.

"How would someone tell you?" he asked her seriously.

"I don't know. Maybe put on a Legolas wig and pretend to shoot stuff for my amusment." she joked, but there was no light in her voice to go along with the words. "but... If they weren't a Lord of the Rings fan, they could start by kissing me."

"I'll have to try that last tip, ." he said, and, at the same time, they both leaned forward.

There was no interruptions, nothing to distract them as their lips collided. Her lips parted slightly under his, and he cupped his hand on her cheek, keeping the kiss slow and sweet. Her hands came to twine around his neck and play with his hair, he kept both his hands on her back.

_And, he swore, in that moment, nothing would ever hurt them ever again._

How very wrong he was.

* * *

><p>THAT WAS NOT A DREAM.<p>

REPEAT.

IM NOT THAT MEAN TWICE.

Okay so if you skipped this chapter because of Father issues, basically Clara and Elijah got together yay!


	11. Chin Boy

"You did right Chin," Clara appraised him with a quick nod of her head. "You did _very_ good." The ending credits continued to scroll, but he wasn't paying attention much to the names of the actors. Nope, he was watching Clara. She was staring at the television, her eyes unfocused from the hours they'd spent that day watching movies, her sock clad feet still tucked tightly under the comforter they brought down for the occasion.

"I figured, I could never be Legolas," he said, leaning towards her, "But I do own all three movies on Blu-ray." She giggled when he began to tickle her, shrieking and playfully kicking at his face.

"I love you." She said happily, and he never could get enough of those three words. Grinning, he leaned down and kissed her. "But…" she sighed dramatically, "I must go to bed. It's nearly nine." She tapped his nose with her finger.

"Nine?" he protested, "Nine is the time four year olds go to bed at."

"Four year olds don't have to wake up at five in the morning to go and teach a bunch of high school students." She pointed out, nudging the stack of graded essays she'd worked on during the movies with her foot, as if trying to point out a fact. He sighed, but it was drawn out and fake.

"I suppose… this is goodnight Clara Oswald." Her smile spread across her face, making him immensely happy, and she leaned in to give him a kiss on the cheek.

"Goodnight, Elijah."

* * *

><p>Amy's head flew upwards at the sound of the small quiet knock, suddenly realizing that she indeed would have to answer it, because Rory was at work. Silently hoping that it would not be her modeling agent, she flew open the door, a water pistil held safely behind her back for… safety. Who knows what could walk through that door.<p>

The water pistil hit the floor with a clash as she saw who it was, and her mouth flew open, her feet staggering backwards.

"Hello Mum." River Song said with a graceful smile, and Amy continued to open and close her mouth like a fish. River took this as her invitation to step inside, and Amy, in a sense of desperation, flung her arms around her daughter. She didn't normally show these signs of affection, but River was her daughter. And she would be able to figure out how to get them out of this. She was as smart as the Doctor.

"River!" she finally managed to gasp, moving backwards into the living room, sinking down on to the sofa before her knees gave away. "How the…" her throat felt suddenly dry, she couldn't get the words out. "How are you here?"

"A computer simulation can get into another computer simulation." River said mysteriously, "But I can't say how. That would be a spoiler." River sat down next to her. "I can't stay long."

"Then _why_ are you here?" Amy asked irritably, she was quite sick of hearing those words coming out of people she loved mouths, because she was so sick and tired of being alone. Alone with her knowledge of the blue box.

"I would like to say a proper goodbye to the Doctor." River said stiffly, the words moving in her mouth like delicate china. Amy hesitated, wondering if she should tell River about the Doctor and Clara. She'd gotten the text from Rose that they'd succeeded in getting the pair together, and at first Amy had been happy, now…she was just confused. She finally decided that her loyalties lied with her daughter.

"Listen, River-" she began, but the other woman cut her off.

"I know about the Doctor and Clara."

"Oh." Amy really at this point didn't know what to say. When she was a little girl, she had imagined having a daughter and helping her with all of her 'boy issues'. Never had Amy imagined having a daughter who may or may not be older than her, and was married to her best friend. Who had just gotten together with another woman. Nope, that never seemed to come across in her childish fantasies. "What do you want…. I mean…. Do you want me to do something about it?" she asked uncertainly.

"No." River said, shocking her. "I came to say goodbye." She paused, and smiled. "And have a little fun." _There's the River I know. _

"Just be careful." Amy warned, and sighed. "I'm guessing you really can't help me with getting her to remember?"

"Afraid that's all up to you Mum." River said fondly, "And, if you will excuse me, I must go see my husband."

* * *

><p>"I thought I told you to leave." John said firmly when his Father entered the kitchen. "Right away. Actually two days ago."<p>

"I asked that blonde woman if I could stay for longer."

"Her name is Rose." John said stiffly, slamming his coffee mug down on the counter. He had to work at the hospital almost all day the past two days, and hadn't had the chance to notice their unwelcome guest.

"Rose. Right." His Dad repeated. "John, I wish…" he stumbled over his words like he was a five year old trying to recite poetry. "I wish… I want… I _need _to make amends with Elijah." John's mug, which had just risen to his lips, hit the floor with a crash, sending shards flying.

"John?" Rose appeared in the doorway, summoned by the cracking sound, but didn't further question the scene,just grabbed a broom from the cupboard and began sweeping up the shards.

"I'll get it." John protested, kneeling down, but she firmly shook her head.

"No." she said, "This talk needs to happen." And with that, she finished and left the room. A huge, resounding knock sounded at the door, John automatically turned towards it-

"I'll get it!" Clara called. She darted down the stairs, not paying attention to the awkward silence between the two men in the kitchen. She was to happy to pay attention to anything sad at the moment.

"Hello!" she gushed as she threw open the door, "This is the Smith residence!" her easy smile and bubbly attitude vanished.

"Hello Sweetie." Elijah's ex-wife said.

* * *

><p>He was happier than he had ever been in his entire life. An easy smile was etched onto his face, a tune was bubbling it's way out of his mouth in a cheery whistle, and he strolled into the kitchen, his mind oblivious to the different scenes playing out around him.<p>

"Elijah?" His Dad said from behind him. He stopped what he was doing, and nearly dropped the mug clutched in his fingers. His whistling was cut off abrubtly, and as he turned around he played Clara's earlier words in his mind.

_Why do you let him push you around?_

Not anymore. He took a deep breath, his newfound relationship with Clara giving him strength._ She gives me strength._

"I'm sorry." The words were unfamiliar sounding, and they sounded wrong almost coming from his Dad's mouth. Elijah's eyes widened, and he felt a bit like a fish that had been pulled out of water, his mouth opening and closing as if looking for air. He _must_ be hallucinating.

"Thank you." He finally managed out, once the hallucination didn't fade, a disbelieving smile spreading across his face. He gave his Dad a brief hug, not even noticing quite how awkward it was. He bolted out of the kitchen, until he found her. There were two women with her, but he didn't pay any attention to them. _They didn't matter. _

"Clara!" he shouted, and pulled her into his arms, spinning her around the room, his laugh echoing, "Oh how I love you!" and it was the truth. He loved the feeling of her arms wrapped around his neck like they were never going to let go, her small adorable smile, the way she only cried when she was desperate, and how there wasn't anything weak about the small tears. Her stubbornness, the way her lips felt against his, the way she made his life _so_ much better. She was his sun. His light. _His Clara._

"I love you too." She said hastily, quietly, and he sat her down, frowning down at her small figure. Just two days ago she was screaming it to the world, and he wondered if his confession scared her. It was the first time he'd ever said it to her, and maybe it was to soon, maybe he was to soon. "We've got company." She muttered in explanation, "Why didn't you tell me your ex-wife was visiting?"

"Hello Sweetie."

* * *

><p>"Where is John?" The woman who had snuck in behind River exclaimed. Clara focused her attention on this new person, trying not to look at River at all. Was it written in some law that she had to meet his ex-wife?<p>

"Who are you?" Rose came out of the kitchen, still in her pajamas.

"I'm Reinette!" the woman said coldly, as if noticing Rose for the first time. She was very curvy and beautiful, her golden hair setting in regal curls on her shoulders. "His girlfriend." Clara saw Rose's mouth stiffen, as she let out a cold amused laugh.

"I'm afraid you're mistaken." She said politely. "John and I just got engaged."

"I need to go." Clara said, to no one in particular. "School's only partially delayed today." She leaned forward and gave Elijah a kiss, not caring about the onlookers, and slung her bag over her shoulder. "See you after." She told him, and Elijah sighed as she dashed out the door.

"Ladies." He said, letting a little desperation creep into his voice, "Surely we can put everything behind us-"

"Reinette and I were wondering if we could stay here for a bit." River said stiffly, and Elijah was about to reply that, no, they were quite full, but Rose responded quicker.

"I'm sure John wouldn't mind his 'girlfriend' staying here." She snapped, and Elijah was about to inform him that his brother would never_, ever_ cheat on her, when she stomped away.

"What she said." He muttered, "OI! JOHN!" he yelled, and followed in Rose's footsteps, stomping up the stairs like a two year old. He knew why River had chosen to come here, it was because she had heard about Clara and decided to ruin his life _again._

_It didn't matter, he was happy with Clara._

* * *

><p>"And then he greeted death as an old friend…" Clara trailed off, her eyes flitting to the window yet again. She was wondering if Elijah was talking to River, or what. <em>What was<em> _happening?_

"Miss Oswald?" a girl sitting in the first row raised her hand. Clara nodded, allowing her to speak. "That's from Harry Potter I believe… Not the book we're reading." Clara uncertainly looked at the board where she indeed, had scrawled a Potter quote across the board.

"Woops." She said, wiping the letters off the board quickly. "Right." She said, finding the proper quote and writing it on the board. "I want a paragraph, and that means 5-6 sentences, explaining why this quote is important in the story." There was a collective groan, and Clara just shook her head slightly. "Be lucky it isn't a page." She said. "Also, I have your essays." She picked up the stack of papers.

_"Why are you doing work on our date?"_

_ "Because Chin Boy, it's how I make money." _

With shaking fingers she passed them out, and sank down into her desk, picking up her phone. She had one text from Elijah.

_So sorry that the first time I told you how much I really loved you was in front of my ex-wife. So, here it goes. Clara Oswald, in the form of a text message, I love you, with all my heart, forever and always._

She grinned.

_Forever and_ Always? She sent back.

_ Yeah, I was thinking it could be our thing. Our words. _

_ Alright then, Forever and Always. _

Feeling extremely more relaxed, she replied to several emails from concerned parents, deleted a few from the angry ones, and read over some writing that Elijah had sent her. He was always sending her writing, because, he insisted, she was an English teacher, and she ought to know when something was good. It was never from his story, his actual novel, and she raised her eyebrows when he told her this one was in fact, from the novel he was writing. Her eyes flitted back and forth as he expertly introduced the characters, explaining their different situations. He really was good.

It was when Oswin came in that she started smiling.

_"Hello?" I ask uncertainly._

_ "Hello?" a voice cracks through the speakers, her voice pitched as if surprised that I could even be talking to her._

_ "Come in, come in." he said, ignoring the eye stalks of a million Daleks behind him. "Come in, Carmen." It was the music she was listening to after all._

_ "Hello!" she gasped, desperate. "Yes, yes, sorry. Do you read me?" he could hear the soft clattering of keys as she tried to reach him, tried to make the signal clearer. _

_ "Yes, reading you loud and clear." He confirmed. "Identify yourself and report your status." _

_ "Oswin Oswald, junior entertainment officer starship Alaska!" she said, her voice practically bubbling over with happiness. "Current status, crashed and shipwrecked somewhere…" her voice broke off as she must have been searching for the right words to describe her situation. "Not nice." She finished lamely, and then keenly moved on, "Been here a year, res of the crew missing. Provisions good but keen to move on." _

"What are you reading?" a voice broke her out of her haze of thoughts and words, and she looked up, smiling at the sight of Rory.

"Oh, nothing." She lied, minimizing the window. "What are you doing here?"

"I had to give shots today." Rory sighed, "anyways, I thought I could join you for lunch."

"Of course!"

* * *

><p>"You used to always disappear here when we were together." River's voice cut through the happy haze of Elijah's thoughts, as the words <em>forever and always <em>floated around in his brain. Echoing happily.

"I didn't know you were capable of remembering me at all." He responded coolly, sliding his phone back into his pocket, wondering if Clara had started reading the story he sent her.

"I was always capable." He almost felt sorry for her, it was obvious she hadn't found anyone new since him, and he could almost hear a tone of regret and sad hope in her voice. "You just didn't pay enough attention."

"Stop acting like that." He said sharply, as she settled down on the ground next to him, looking at him with her eyes. Those eyes were what made him fall in love with her in the first place.

"Stop doing what?" she asked, and he couldn't help but think that she sounded different somehow, older, sadder. He didn't know quite how to respond to it.

"You know." He waved his hands about. "Trying to…" he stumbled over his words. "seducing me."

"I am not trying to seduce you, Doctor."

"Why does everyone keep calling me that?" he burst out, his hands digging into the grass.

"No idea." She said lightly, "And I want you to know, I have no intention of staying," he noticed her wince slightly at his audible sigh of relief. "I just came to say, it's okay."

"It's okay?" he questioned her, and she nodded.

"To go on with things with Clara."

"I didn't ask for your permission. You did divorce me." He pointed out.

"I meant, when you wake up." She said, and silenced his protest with a look. "Goodbye sweetie." She said, and as he watched her walk away, he couldn't help but feel like something was ending, this time for good.

"Goodbye." He called after her, and she only slightly looked back. _This is the last time I'm going to see her. _He found himself thinking, which didn't make any sense, because this wasn't goodbye _forever?_ Was it? It wasn't like she was dead, he assured himself, pulling the laptop he'd set down towards him again, determined to get some writing in.

* * *

><p>She screamed. She'd hiked for hours, hours and hours just to get to the summit of this damn mountain. Maybe, just maybe, she'd thought that if she got high enough above all the problems she could see a way out. But she was still clueless.<p>

Amy sank down into the dirt, lying flat on her back so she could get a nice proper look at the sky. She closed her eyes for a fraction of a second - wondering that if she stayed here forever, if the Doctor and Rory would eventually find her. They'd pull her out of this terrible dream and shake their heads, somehow blaming her for this nightmare that had been built up around her. It would be a scientific reason though, and she'd press her face into Rory's shoulder before bounding off into the TARDIS, determined to forget. Forget everything that had happened.

_Nothing is ever forgotten, and, if something can be remembered, it can come back._

Her eyes flew open. That was it, she realized with a dawning passion, that was the answer. She had to find what made Clara remember. She had to find her key.

* * *

><p>He was waiting for her on a motorbike when she left work. She laughed slightly, quickly running up to him and burying her face in his neck. "You didn't have to come and get me." She protested, but Elijah simply swung her onto the back of his bike.<p>

"Come away with me, Impossible Girl." She clutched tightly at his back as he sped away. They climbed high into the mountains, his bike going slower and slower as they reached higher altitudes. They finally reached an outlook, and he helped her off his bike.

"To assure you of my never dying affection," he shot her a lopsided grin, and gestured to the elaborate picnic laid out. Clara laughed, moving to sit down on the blanket, her hand finding his like it was always meant to.

"You're the best."

"And you're the boss."

"Am I?"

"No…! No! I didn't- I mean."

"Oh shut up Chin Boy."she leaned in, and kissed him, to silence the protests coming out of his lips.

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry if I suck at writing River I have never actually written her before and idk...<strong>

**SORRY FOR THE DELAY! School has been whacking me around the head with a hammer it feels like... Just finished my ten page character analysis so hopefully this next update will get out soon.**

**It's about to get really serious, in the next couple chapters, things are happening.**

**This is just a filler. Again. Sorry!**

**Review please:)**


	12. NEXT TIME

**Hehe. Um, I felt like I was losing readers because it was getting a bit drawn out. So here's a preview for next chapter to reassure you guys that the end is nearing...**

**It's like dominos. I set them all up, and now I'm about to make them all crash down. **

**Yay**

* * *

><p>Amy?" Clara asked, looking up from her desk, to see her Scottish friend moving through the crowds of departing frowned slightly at the sight of her friend, wondering why she was here of all places.<p>

"I need your help with something." Amy said, and Clara slightly crinkled her nose, Amy's 'helping' usually meant something dangerous. And Clara didn't want to risk her life, not when she just had fallen in love with Elijah. Not when her life was just falling into place.

"What does this entail?" she asked calmly, and Amy narrowed her eyes, her hand going to her bag.

"You remembering." She said briskly, pulling out a gun, and pointing it at Clara's head.


	13. No One Can Hear You Now

_I was born to save the Doctor. _

Clara woke up screaming, and for the second time, Elijah came to her aide. He didn't question her, just climbed into bed next to her and wrapped his arms tightly around her. Almost like he did this every night.

"I'm here." He whispered to her, and her tears began to slow, but she could stop the hysteria bubbling out of her mouth. She became aware of her surroundings all at once, and was relieved to find it all in shades of blue, no orange, no spirals. _No falling._ She gripped his shirt tightly, and tried to fight against the rising nausea._ No_, she told herself, _I'm safe._ Elijah has me. She tried to forget it, but something nagging at the back of her brain told her that she was an imposter, that this was all fake. That everything in her life was fake.

She closed her eyes tightly, and concentrated on how he was stroking her hair, because he made everything better.

"What was the dream about?" he asked soothingly.

"I was falling." She whispered, "and I didn't even know _who_ I was. I was trying to save someone." The flash of a face, and a frantic scream of '_Clara!' _rose to her mind. "Someone important." _Someone all to important._

"Who?"

"You." She said, but it didn't seem right. It had been his face though, she was certain of it. But the name Elijah didn't fit it. No, the man in her dream's name had been like music, and it had come back to her while she fell.

"I'm here, I'm safe." He promised her, and she fell asleep in his arms.

* * *

><p>She decided to still go to work, when she woke, even if she did awake with her tearstained face pressed against Elijah's t-shirt. He must have not gotten much sleep the night before, because he didn't even stir at the insistent beeping of her alarm clock. She quickly slipped free of his grip and turned it off, stepping into the shower.<p>

The hot water did little to clear her muddled thoughts, and she got dressed in a haze, putting two socks on one foot, and her shirt on backwards. Once all of her clothing items were in the correct places on her body, she continued the rest of her routine, making sure she looked presentable, and shoving a bagel into her mouth.

Elijah's jacket hung on a peg by the door, next to hers, and after a moments contemplation, she chose that one. She slipped on the dark brown jacket, (**like the one he wears in Closing Time)** and left the house in a hurry, hoping that their present guest wasn't disturbed.

Reinette, unlike River, had decided to stay for the duration of the week, and Clara could already see the beginnings of cracks in the Doctor and Rose's relationship. Rose was only ever at home after nine P.M, and disappeared into her room. She left at 8:00 every morning, and dropped Clara off some coffee on her way to work. She hardly talked to John, and Clara didn't even know if they were sleeping in the same bed together... anymore.

While she was driving up to the school, she peered up at the sky, a small frown etched on her face. Dark purplish clouds glared down at her, and she couldn't help but feel the ominous tingle up her seemed to be warning her. _There's a storm coming._

She pulled into the parking lot, and nearly fell over as a huge gust of wind shot into her side. She quickly ran for the door, ignoring all of the students amused looks as she barreled past them. She righted herself once she reached the halls, heading towards her classroom with a calm, under control attitude. The weather was against her then.

Clara sank down into her desk, and with a small smile, bent to straighten the picture of her and the Doctor… Elijah. They had just hiked Mount Trenzalore, and Clara could see the sheen of sweat on both of them, could practically taste the fresh air, could hear his laugh on the wind. And that made everything okay, as long as she could see his face. _Everything._ She did realize she was turning into one of those physcotic romantics who only cared about their boyfriend, but, she supposed, it was okay to be happy sometimes.

The bell went off before she could react, and she leaped to her feet, quickly scrawling the 'Quote of the Day' on the board. She liked first period. They were quiet, their sleep deprived minds finding no urge to chatter, and they usually got the best grades.

_She still wished she was at home._

* * *

><p>Amy?" Clara asked, looking up from her desk, to see her Scottish friend moving through the crowds of departing kids. The period had just finished, and she looked warily up from the quizzes she was grading. What was up with these Ponds and disturbing her work schedule?<p>

"I need your help with something." Amy said, and Clara slightly crinkled her nose, Amy's 'helping' usually meant something dangerous. And Clara didn't want to risk her life, not when she just had fallen in love with Elijah.

"What does this entail?" she asked calmly, and Amy narrowed her eyes, her hand going to her bag, reaching for something.

"You remembering." She said briskly, pulling out a gun, and pointing it at Clara's head.

Clara's mouth opened in a shocked gasp, her eyes going wide. Amy didn't look okay, her hair was in tangled knots, and the shadows under her eyes looked like someone had taken paint and smeared it on her face. The gun which she held trembled, and Clara was scared. More scared than she had_ ever_ been.

"Amy what the hell are you doing?" she demanded, but instead of sounding direct and firm, her voice was shaking, her tone weak. "Remember what?" her fingers grasped for the pepper spray in her purse, but she realized that she'd never put it back in after accidentally spraying Jack in the supermarket the other day...

"No questions." Amy snapped, and she gestured towards the door, "Shall we?" Clara, not understanding anything anymore, stepped up, and Amy shakily put the barrel against her back. They passed through the halls, but no one stopped them, possibly thinking two friends were going for coffee. They couldn't see the gun pressed to her back.

_Braveheart Clara. _Elijah's voice echoed in her mind, but she didn't remember hearing those words ever escape his mouth, still it helped calm her mind. Her legs were still shaking as Amy took her to her car, and shoved her in the backseat. Clara's face hit the seat with a thud, and the door slammed, preventing her from running. The car took off with a screech, and Clara's attempts to rise from the seat were thwarted as she was thrown back against the plastic coated seats. She could feel the car's speed from her position, and she gripped the seat with trembling fingers, her eyes screwed shut.

This would all be dream, she told herself. She would wake up screaming any second, and Elijah would be there. He would make it better. _He had to._

He didn't come. Amy shoved her out of the car, and she hit the dirt with a thud, her palms scraping against the uneven ground. She straightened up, and her eyes widened when she saw they were in a graveyard. _Amy wasn't going to kill her was she? _

It had begun to rain, as if the world was crying, as if it was fighting against what Amy was about to do to her. The rain began to soak through her clothes immediately, and she could barely see the flash of red hair through the down pour.

"Remember!" Amy shrieked, and Clara immediately backed up. Her back thudded against a grave stone, and she nearly fell over the top.

"Amy, I don't understand." She said slowly, her voice careful. Amy didn't look sane. She didn't look right. She looked… _terrified._

"The Doctor." Amy said shakily "because I can't do it anymore. I can't be alone!" her eyes were popping. "and I can't stop myself!" she added, but the last bit sounded forced, as if Amy had to struggle to get those words out.

"Doctor?" Clara said slowly, the name stirring something inside her. A memory.

_"Clara who?" he asked her, as if to avoid anything else she had to stay._

_ "Doctor who?" she countered, her voice raising up mockingly._

_ "Oh, dangerous question." _

_ "What's wrong with dangerous?" _

Clara's hand went to her head, her eyes widening. _Where did that come from? _

"Doctor who?" she said, but the words felt to familiar in her mouth. _Doctor._

_"So that's who." _

"Daleks!" Amy shouted, but it didn't seem like a random guess, it sounded planned, planned and effective, and Clara fell to the ground, her hands going to her eyes, her temples bursting with pain.

"Stop." She begged, as flashes of screaming and his cold eyes filled her mind. _Oswin, I am so sorry, but you are a dalek. _ He hated her then. Hated her down to her eyestalk. _You dreamed it for yourself because the truth was to terrible.  
><em>

It was like a door had opened though, and she couldn't stop the flow of memories pouring out of her like water, and she wanted to scream, and scream, and never stop. She opened her mouth, and a high shriek filled the air. Amy was next to her in a moment, her hand going to Clara's shoulder, but she shoved her off.

She did this. Amy did this. Clara raised hate filled eyes up to the ginger woman, staggering to her feet, every sensible thought obliterated by the pain. Elijah's jacket was soaked, and it lay heavily on her shoulders, making her balance uneven. "Why me?" she screamed, through the loud claps of thunder and flashes of lightning. She could remember everything now, remember who she really was, and she hated it. She was so happy, had been so happy, and now every memory of death, every memory of pain, echoed throughout her head. _She was breaking into a thousand pieces, and she didn't think she would ever land._

"I didn't want to do it like this!" Amy sobbed as well, and Clara looked at her in bafflement. Only then did she notice the tears streaming down the other woman 's face, the look of horror in her eyes. "I can't control.." she broke off with a gasp. "You have to make him remember." She gasped out, her feet back pedaling.

"Who?" Clara asked, moving closer to the frightened girl. She had never found it in her heart ot be to extremely mad at someone in pain.

"The Doctor! You're the only one." Amy was sobbing now, and through the rain, Clara saw her raise a gun to her chest. The gun looked black, so black in the light from lighting, and Clara knew what she was going to do.

"AMY NO!" she screamed.

_Crack. _

The red blood was very bright against the rain.

**DID YOU LIKE IT?**


	14. Flying

He read her a chapter of a book every morning. It was always very early, when the sun had just begun to peek over the mountains to wake them up. She was never fully awake, she never was these days, but as he opened the book, he could practically see her eyes focus on his face in always loved to hear him read.

He did all the voices, making the tone high or low to affect, and she would laugh, that beautiful sound. She would tell him not to disturb the woman visiting her husband next door, but he would simply shake his head, telling her off for disturbing the story. When the chapter was finished, he'd close the book with a smile, and the old woman would give him a sad smile.

Then there was silence. As soon as the cover flapped shut, it all faded to colors of grey and dull green. Her laugh floated away on the wind, along with the happiness in his heart. He would stand up off the grass, worn in the spot where he sat day after day, and he would turn to go/

The sign above where she sleeps is misleading he tells himself, just as he does everyday. It doesn't mean anything, because she'll be back with him any minute now, any minute she'll wake back up. She has to.

He traces the letters on the sign, and takes a deep breath.

_Clara Oswald_

_Born: April 12, 1989_

_Died: April 12, 2014_

_She flies among the stars, even now._

The Doctor turns to go, his shoulders heavy. "I will fix this." He tells her, under her green blanket. "I promise."

**One month earlier.**

_Drip. Drip. Drip._

She was drowning in memories. She was drowning in the water that clung to her skin, to Elijah's coat. She was drowning in blood, Amy's blood, as she tried to stop the other girl's bleeding.

"HELP ME!" she screamed, "SOMEONE PLEASE!" her voice cracked, and she began to violently sob, Amy had to wake up. She couldn't leave her alone in this. Amy was still alive, moaning, and Clara kept screaming.

"Oh my Lord, ROGER!"

* * *

><p>She was breaking. Everything hurt. Breathing hurt. Moving hurt, shutting her eyes hurt. She couldn't decide what was worse, Amy's death, or the Doctor's ignorance to his own memories. She could hear Rory's sobs from where she was frozen in the hospital waiting room, but no one was comforting him. Everyone was scared. Scared to face his grief, as they carried his dead fiancée to the morgue. He didn't seem to even know why he was crying. He didn't know why Amy wasn't at his side.<p>

And now Clara knew she was going to die as well. It only made sense. She was disposable, and dangerous.

Rory's grief stricken voice rose above everything else, and John seemed to shrink in front of his gaze. "Where is she?" he kept repeating, "Amy loves to play jokes on me you see," he would tell anyone he passed, "she wouldn't kill herself. This is all a joke."

"Clara?" it was Rose. Her friend stood uncertainly above her, tearstains on her cheeks. "I think it's time to take you home." Clara looked down at her hands, and realized she was still clutching Amy's red scarf, the end soaked with blood, which dripped onto the floor and created a gruesome puddle at her feet.

"Where is she?" she repeated Rory, even though her mind was telling her the truth, "This has to be a joke." _Her life couldn't be falling apart like this. _

"AMY?!" Rory yelled, "COME ON. ENOUGH'S ENOUGH. I KNOW YOU'RE THERE." He let out a shaky laugh, walking up to Clara. His face was streaked with tears, which he kept reaching up to wipe off, like if he couldn't see the tears then everything was okay. "Those girls, eh Clara? Always playing games." He said to her, and then noticed Amy's scarf in her grip. "That's Amy's." he said, taking it from her grasp. He gasped when her blood seeped into his fingers. "Amy." He whispered, and Clara knew his illusion was over.

She dashed out of the hospital, and threw up.

"Clara?!" Elijah's hand was on her back, and she looked up at him, her eyes clouding with tears. He wasn't him. He wasn't the Doctor. He saw her scared eyes, her shaking hands, and he knelt down, using the gentlest voice she had ever heard. "Let's get you home," he said softly, "and clean you up." And in that moment, she knew he wasn't the Doctor at all, because the Doctor would have hid from her tears, hid himself from her emotions. That knowledge brought another sob rising to her throat, and his arm went tightly around her shoulders.

The way home was a blur. That night was a blur. _Or was it night? _She stared at her hands, at the way the blood swirled down the drain like a red whirlpool, part of her wondering who was going to do this for Elijah when she died. He was behind her, scrubbing her hands clean, because she couldn't find the effort to do that herself. She couldn't find the effort to do anything.

"Clara," he said slowly, "You need to take a hot shower, and I don't think you want me to assist you in that." She looked up at him, eyes wide.

"No shower." She said firmly, "No more water." She looked down at her hands, and shrieked when she saw that they were dripping wet. She stood up, and avidly tried to dry them, trying not to cry. Rain reminded her of Amy, and Amy reminded her of death, and death reminded her of herself.

Elijah was tired, she could see that, as he gently dried her hands with a cloth, and pressed a kiss to her forehead. If she closed her eyes, she could pretend she could feel the slight vibrations of the TARDIS floor, and she was Clara. Just Clara. And he was the Doctor. Just the Doctor. It was as it always should be.

But then he moved his lips down, and pressed a quick kiss against hers, and the image popped like a bubble. She turned her head quickly to the side, hoping that he couldn't see the tears starting to surface in her eyes.

"I'm sorry." He said, but he wasn't apologizing for the kiss, she knew that. He was apologizing for Amy's death, even though it should affect him more than her. He pulled her in for a hug, and she was suddenly aware of the fact that he was wearing a stripy long sleeved shirt, not tweed. He didn't even have a bow tie on, she realized, and somehow that simple fact made her whole body shake with sobs.

He took this as her grief showing, and he stroked her hair with careful fingers, pressing reassuring kisses into her hair. She wanted him back. She realized in that moment, that she loved him.

_She loved the Doctor._

And that notion kept her sobbing, because she knew now that she would never get to see his face light up again as he showed her a planet, she would never see his old sad eyes.

"Let's get you to bed." He told her softly, and sniffling slightly she nodded, and let him guide her to his bedroom, and she realized that for the last week she had been sleeping in there. She sank uncomfortably down on to the sheets, giving him a watery smile as he said he would be right back with something to eat.

Moving quickly and quietly so Elijah wouldn't return, she pulled out a paper from his desk. She began to write him a letter, a letter telling him what to do. She took her Mother's ring off her finger, and slipped it into the envelope, it was up to him now.

She could hear his footsteps on the stairs, and she slipped back under the covers and closed her eyes. She heard his fond exhalation of breath at the sight of her 'sleeping'. She felt his lips as they pressed against his forehead.

* * *

><p>He leaves while she's sleeping. It was the only reason he wasn't at Rory's side after all, and travels quickly to the Ponds house, a strange brotherly feeling erupting in his gut. While he hadn't conversed much with the other man, he couldn't imagine Clara dying, and could only think of what Rory was going through.<p>

Whoever left Rory on his own should be sent to prison, he thought as he opened the door. He expected someone to be with the man, he had just lost his fiancée after all.

Rory was sitting on the floor, a bottle clutched in his grip, and that was the first sign to Elijah that something was terribly wrong. For whatever reason, he felt a despair clogging up inside, even though he had hardly knew Amy, and all their interactions involved Rose or Clara. It was almost as if he knew her in another life, like she was his best friend. _And now she's gone._

He locked the door behind him, not because he was going to do anything bad. But because Rory hadn't locked it himself, as if every ounce of life had gone out of him.

"Hi." Rory slurred up at him, and Elijah bent down and pried the bottle from his grip. Rory didn't drink more than a glass, and certainly never got drunk. "I'm a bachelor now." He informed Elijah, "I can drink as much as I want." Elijah dumped out the contents of the bottle in the sink, and sighed a worn out sigh.

"Rory." He said, "Would Amy want you to be like this?"

"She didn't want me anymore," Rory said in defeat, "The doctors say she shot herself. I wasn't enough." His voice cracked, and he looked despratly around himself. "Where's my drink?"

"Down the sink." He informed him, and knelt down next to the other man, pulling him up, slinging his arm across his shoulder. He helped him up, and got him off the floor and began to make his way to where he and Amy used to sleep.

"No." Rory said firmly, "Couch." He seemed to let Elijah help him, and not pushing it, he set him down on the couch. "Bed still smells like her." Rory mumbled into the cushions. Elijah sighed, sitting down in the arm chair. He took out his cell phone, and frowned. _5 missed calls from Rose._

"Elijah!" Rose sounded relieved when he called her back. "Where are you?"

"Rory's." he answered.

"Is Clara with you?" she demanded.

"No…" he trailed off, "She was at the house-"

"No!" Rose cried, "No…. She's not. I'm there."

"What do you mean she isn't at the house?"

"I don't know… but Elijah, someone left a note." Something in her voice tells him that this note can't be good.

"What did it say?"

"It said, 'She's gone now, gone for good.'"

"One of you come here and look after Rory." He said, and when Rose protested, "NOW." He was out the door before he knew it, and everything went as soon as he stepped out the door.

* * *

><p>He wasn't alone when he woke. He was on a plane, bound to one of the first class seats. He was staring at Clara, who was by the emergency door, held by an old woman with what looked like claws.<p>

"Clara." He choked out, wondering why he was here, why she was here. She just gave him a sad look, tears trailing down her face.

"Don't question anything." Said a cold, dead voice. Walter Simeon walked into his line of view. "This has to happen Elijah."

"What has to happen?" he demanded of all three of them, but the old woman just let out a cackling laugh, and Simeon stayed silent.

"I have to die." Clara said shakily, and he was immediately fighting against his bonds.

"Who the hell told you that?" he said forcefully, and something in her eyes makes him believes that she does believe it. That she honestly believes that she should die.

"Nobody had to." She said, "and I don't believe it, but I have to."

"That makes no sense."

"If I don't die, they'll kill you." She said simply.

"THEN LET ME DIE. I'M NOT WORTH IT CLARA." He yelled with fury at her, and she flinched back. "LET. ME. DIE."

"Look," she told Simeon, "You want this done? Let's do it now." She stared unflinchingly into his gaze. "It was always going to end like this." Simeon nodded, and the plane door flew open.

"NO! CLARA…." He trailed off, as the old woman began to drag her. "Please." He begged her, and she turned to face him. "Don't do this."

"I can't even control my body anymore." She sobbed, turning to face him, "I can't control my legs."

"Don't leave me alone Clara." He begged, "Let me die." As if it took great effort, she turned her head.

"Run."

_He was a runner. He always had been, since he was a young man and had ran away from the time lords. He had a passion for running, and he liked to do with someone else's hand in his. They always clutched as his hand like it was a lifeline, and he clutched at them with his desperate fingers, determined not to let them trail away like water. Their laughter filled the halls of his lonely ship for such a short time, their beautiful songs echoing around the infinite vastness. They always left though-_

"You."

_His name echoed through the stars, painted among them, but hidden within the universes code, a secret that only three people knew anymore. Clara, River and himself. Clara always knew. She knew it from the moment she set her eyes upon it in that book, and she never really had forgotten it._

"Clever."

_He had always called himself clever, it was a title he hid behind often, to mask what he was really feeling. He sometimes occasionally couldn't find the right words and made stuff up, mostly to impress those lovely humans he adored so much._

"Boy."

_He certainly was a boy, and felt it every time he kissed River, kissed Rose, hell even Amy. But most definitely the one time he kissed Clara, or a version of Clara, and her lips felt so soft under his, and she was a delicate flower, he realized, a china doll, and that he had to take care of her._

"And."

_There was an ending to everything, and he remembered often wondering whether there was an afterlife for him after all he did, after everyone he hurt. There certainly couldn't be an after for him could there? He'd lived most of his life in solitude, but his stupid mind still reached out for his friends, those precious people who meant so much to him._

"Remember."

He knew who he was. _It was to late._

The old woman, with a final tug, yanked herself and Clara off the plane, and a pained scream worked its way out of his mouth, as he literally ripped the ropes from his body and sprinted towards the door. Simeon grasped his arms and he couldn't reach her. _He couldn't save her._

She seemed to be falling in slow motion, or maybe it was just this world. When she saw him looking at her, at her demise, she carefully turned her head to the side and closed her eyes, like seeing his pain hurt her.

* * *

><p>He woke up in a alley, with his face pressed against the urine scented wall, and his arms and legs jammed behind him. For a moment he stayed there, wondering what the hell he was doing in an alley way, before he remembered. With a new desperation, he shoved his way to his feet, and stumbled out into the town square.<p>

He heard the sobs and shrieks of pain before he saw her. They wouldn't have left her in a place where she wouldn't be noticed for days, they had to leave her in a place where everyone would see her.

He fights his way to the front of the crowd of people surrounding her, and shoves John aside, not even pausing to wonder why his tenth incarnation is here.

There's no way she could have survived that fall, and he knows that in his heart, but he supposes that it's damn simulation that makes her eyes flutter slightly when he kneels next to her. He crouch's over her protectively, blocking out all the eyes of the people around them. They don't deserve to be here. To see her last moments.

"Doctor." She whispers slightly, her eyes peering open slightly, and he knows it must be the simulation, because he can't actually see the life draining from her eyes can he?

"Hey there." He whispers, and smiles down at her, trying to mask the pain about to burst out him in a vast storm of emotion. They didn't call him the oncoming storm for no reason.

"It hurts." She says softly, and her voice is so quiet for a moment he thinks she's gone. "But I flew." she adds, and he can hear the imaginative little girl who lost her Mother peeking out from in-between the gasps of pain she released.

"I know, Impossible Girl." He says just as quietly, "But…" he takes a deep breath, "It will feel better in a minute, I promise. You saved me Clara. Again. I'm here. It's the Doctor." He said it so quietly no one could hear him. She smiles then, and it seems to pain her, to move those muscles in her face.

"I did it." She says, "I love you."

"I love you too." He chokes out, and it's the last thing he says to her. She sighs a contented sigh, and the light drains from her eyes like water down a faucet.

People lie, he thought, as he pressed his face into her neck and sobbed, when they say dead bodies look like they're sleeping. They lie, because she doesn't look like that. She's gone. Her limbs are broken, and a thin pool of blood is pooling on the pavement and soaking into his shirt but he doesn't care.

He's crying because he lost her again, and that her eyes are staring glassily up at the sky she always loved to see with try to pull him back with their words, _She's gone. _They whisper, _She's not coming back._

_Forever and Always._

**_Please don't hate me._**


	15. Truth

They wanted him and Rory to get involved in the planning of their girlfriends funerals. He thought that notion was sick, that they were treating it like some stupid party, and couldn't even begin to wrap his head around it, because if he started to plan, if he started to tell people, if he tried to talk to her Father, then it meant she was really dead. That she was really gone.

"John," he said, trying to mimic the brotherly tone Elijah had captured perfectly. "I said no. I don't want to plan her funeral, and neither does Rory." John sighed, and sat down across the table from where The Doctor was currently working. He was typing furiously, trying to capture every detail from when he first noticed an echo of Clara, because he thought that if he saved her memory, he could save her somehow. He would save her.

"Look, I know you don't want to get involved with…" Rose swung into the room, and sank down next to him. Her blonde hair hang in lank strips around her makeup free face, and she looked truly exhausted, her eyes slipping shut even as she was talking to him. "Their resting," she chose the words carefully, "But it's making me feel better, honestly."

"You don't look like it." He snapped, and then looked down at his laptop again. He didn't ever consider that he would ever once snap at Rose, but that was when he was a foolish young man, who had not just seen his best friends die. That was in a different life, when he had a different face, and he felt like this face had seen more desolation and despair than the face she knew had ever seen, and he didn't feel like she even knew him anymore. He didn't know her anymore.

"They were my best friends." She said slowly, reaching out and gripping his hand with her fingers, "I know how it feels."

"No you don't." he said softly, "because you haven't lost John. Hopefully you never will. I've lost friends, and it doesn't hurt as badly as when you lose the love of your life." He slammed the computer shut, pulled his hand out of her grasp, and nearly fled the kitchen, disappearing into his room, closing his eyes. _The love of my life. _

The first time he leaves his room, and he gets bombarded with helping plan a funeral like it was prom.

The room is, quite frankly, a mess. Usually he keeps things neat and tidy, the TARDIS always used to be spotless, something Amy used to tease him about endlessly. A pair of spare sheets were strewn on the floor, the first day after Clara died, that first night, he refused to sleep in his bed. It still smelled like her, was still wrinkled from where she had lain that terrible night, and he didn't want that impression on his bed ever to fade. Didn't want that smell to fade into the distance.

So he slept on the floor. He placed his laptop on the desk and knelt down, attempting to straighten the covers from their misshapen heap on the floor. The picture of Clara he kept next to him while he slept clattered to the floor as he shaked the covers out, and he quickly picked it up and set it on the desk as well.

When Amy and Rory left him in Manhatten, and the halls of his ship were devoid of laughter and flashes of ginger hair, he built himself a cloud so no one could hear him sob at night for hours on end, so no one could hear him scream when it got to be to much, and he always kept a picture of them in his pocket. He still did. It was folded up, and whenever things got especially bad, he would pull it out with a quiet smile, examining the light on all three of their faces, and if he closed his eyes, just for a moment, he could hear that Scottish voice and that centurian, teasing him about his bow tie.

He had two pictures of Clara, one that he placed on the pillow next to him, and the other stowed away in his pocket for when it got to be to much. He pulled out that picture now, and smiled in sweet sadness.

It was a picture Elijah had taken of her one day by the lake, when she wasn't looking at him, her eyes focused on something in far off in the distance, her brown hair lifted gently by the wind, her small petite lips lifted up in a dreamy smile. _His Clara._

He tucked it away quickly, abandoning his efforts to clean his room. Clara always liked things neat, and it reminded him of why he had the sudden need to be messy. He couldn't think of her and had to think of her all at once, and it was to much to bear sometimes.

A piece of paper had swirled to the floor when he bumped into the desk, and he picked it up, his breath catching in his throat when he saw Clara's handwriting.

* * *

><p>When she woke up, the first thing she registered was white. Her eyes began blink wearily at the only spot of color in the rumbling room, which was a streak of red hair.<p>

"Clara?" Amy's voice cut through her haze, and Clara sat up, rubbing her forehead.

"Amy?" she asked, because she was dead wasn't she? She couldn't possibly be alive. Not after that. The surface in which she was sitting on was shaking, and she could barely scoot over to the ginger girl.

"We're not in the simulation anymore." Amy whispered to her, her breath tickling Clara's ear. Clara's eyes went wide, and she stared at Amy in disbelief, before quickly scanning her surroundings. The rumbling white room was small, so small that even her short legs were crammed against the opposite wall. There was one small window, high on the opposite wall, and Clara quickly scrambled to her feet, standing on her tip toes so she could see through the slightly warped glass.

A soft whoosh of air flew out of her lips when she saw what was outside. It wasn't an uncommon sight, she had traveled enough with the Doctor to get used to seeing the stars up close. She could immediantly tell that they were moving however, moving very fast, and she sank to her knees, pressing a hand to her stomach as the white streaks imprinted themselves onto her eyelids.

"To fast for you to see anything?" Amy asked her, and Clara answered with a quiet nod. She wasn't quite sure how to react to Amy, she could still feel the gun the other girl had pressed to her back, and didn't think she would forget it anytime soon.

"I couldn't control my body when I held the gun to your head." Amy said, answering Clara's unspoken worry. Clara gave her a weak smile in return, all doubt vanishing from her. She did trust Amy, and she to had no choice but to fall from that plane, her legs had minds of there own.

"Where's the Doctor?" she asked her, and when she looked up, she was surprised to see tears had risen to the surface in Amy's eyes.

"They left them." She said, avoiding Clara's eyes. "When he remembered, and you woke up, they abandoned the ship. Evacuated. Left them to live and die a thousand times in that bloody world."

"What about us?" Clara demanded.

"We're their prisoners." Amy said, staring at her feet. She didn't elaborate, and Clara didn't ask her to.

"The Doctor will come for us." Clara reassured her, "he has to." Amy simply turned her head from her, resting it against the opposite wall, as if she wanted to sleep. Clara curled her legs up underneath her, and closed her eyes as well, but she wasn't trying to sleep.

_"I love you too." _His words came back to her in the dark, and she bit her lip, wondering the truth behind those words. Did he really love her? Or was he simply saying that because she was dying? She had always believed in giving comfort to the dying, and she had told him as much when they had encountered a dying homeless alien in the back streets of some far away planet. Was he simply adopting her notions for her sake? Those thoughts were pressing at the barriers of her mind, and even though she tried to distract herself with real life problems, like how the hell they were going to get out of here, but it kept coming back like a recurring cold, preventing her from any escape.

"Are you awake?" a small voice echoed through the room, and the far right wall slid open, revealing a small woman with her head bowed.

"What's it to you?" Amy asked, straightening up. The woman shrank a little from her fiery gaze, but Clara just nodded.

"My Master was wondering if you would have the pleasure of dining with him." The woman said, her eyes trained solely on the floor.

"And who is your Master?" Clara used the voice she had developed when she met the cybermen, and it later attributed to her teaching skills, it was the perfect mix of bossy and demanding, and it usually worked well to her affect.

"I'm not authorized to say that Miss." The woman said, and she took a tentative step into the cell. "I'm just supposed to get you looking presentable."

"What if we don't want to go?" Amy matched Clara's tone perfectly, and Clara had to refrain from smiling. Her and Amy would make a good team.

"I'm afraid if you refuse," the woman's voice was still small, her mousy hair seemed to wilt with every continued word. "You will be forced into going."

"I thought it was optional."

"I was supposed to say that first Miss, and if you refused I was supposed to say that there is no other option." Clara's eyes met Amy's across the room, and a silent agreement seemed to pass between the two women. They both gave a brief nod, and the woman clapped her hands.

Immediately the room was filled with things. They resembled mice, but were the size of humans. They grabbed Clara and Amy by the arms and roughly heaved them to their feet, dragging them out of their cell out into the unknown.

* * *

><p>When people say that dead bodies look like they're sleeping, they're lying. They tell themselves that to fool themselves into thinking that they're still in there somewhere, that they will wake up with an exclamation and a hug. The Doctor had never been one of those people. He had seen enough corpses in his lifetime to know when someone was dead, and Clara was no exception, no matter how badly he wanted her to be alive, he had thrown the letter across the room, because it was all to much.<p>

"Hello." He said to her. She didn't move, she didn't respond. The people behind him tutted in sympathy, and he was sure he wasn't the first, or the last, lover to talk to his dead girlfriend during the viewing. "I'm doing okay. You know, with one heart and all." He tried to lift his voice up into a happy peaceful town, but it sounded squeaky and pathetic to his own ears. "Anyways, I just wanted you to know-" his voice choked off with the rising sob, "know, that I won't stop trying. Because we're not finished yet Clara. Trust me." He rooted around his pocket, and finally pulled it out.

It was the key. The TARDIS key. He had walked down to the lake this morning, and there it sat, on a rock. He had picked it up immediantly, and had always known, at least in the back of his head, that he would leave it here with her.

"I never know why," he whispered to her, "I only know who."

He regained his composure and walked away, examining Amy's body. Rory was staring at her face, tears still staining his cheeks, and he nearly fled. He couldn't face Rory's pain, because the terrible guilt infested his insides like worms. If Rory knew, if he even had the slightest idea of who the Doctor really was, he would stare at the other man with hatred, and he deserved it.

He had managed to lose his Clara and his Amy both in the same day. How was it possible to lose so much and still be breathing? He nearly ran out of the hall, determined to get away from the imagined stench of dead bodies, the echos of all the laughs he'd shared with each of them.

"Where do you think you're going?" Rory was on him before he could escape, and the Doctor warily turned around, his eyes looking anywhere else but his best mates face. "Doctor, wh

"Rory?" his eyes were now being pulled to his large-nosed friend, "How- What?"

* * *

><p>She felt like a doll. Every single inch of her face was covered in make up, her hair pulled back into pristine curls, her body stuffed into a deep blue dress. Clara had never liked tight dresses, and this one was no exception. It clung to her like a second skin, and she immediately had the urge to fling it from her body. It was the color of the TARDIS, and it made tears rise to her eyes when she stared at it to long. It was strapless, and matched the heels that seemed to be glued to her feet. It showed far to much skin for her liking, and didn't help that Amy stood next to her in the same thing, and it looked like it was specially formatted for her body.<p>

"Where do you think they're taking us?" Amy leaned over and whispered in her ear. She had to slightly kneel, because even in heels, Clara was still way shorter.

There was a guard on either side of them, their guns still pressed to the small of their backs, and Clara had a feeling that neither one of them would hesitate to use them.

The ship, as far as she could tell had several different levels, and was all white., except for the people and various aliens that lined the halls. No one said a word, just watched them with wide eyes as their heels cracked against the floor. Every time she tried to look down a different hall, one of the guards would nudge her even more foreword, and she would stumble slightly.

They finally made it to a pair of elaborate purple doors, so far the only color in architecture she'd seen. The guards didn't follow them in, but shoved them through the doors. Amy reached out and steadied Clara, years of practice with the Doctor's clumsiness making her reactions quick.

"Welcome, welcome, ladies." A man declared, whirling around slightly, and as he faced them, Clara gasped.

"Doctor?!" Amy burst out before Clara could reply, and she started forward.

"Yes, yes, yes." The man babbled, "I get that a lot." Clara grabbed Amy's wrist and gripped it tightly, preventing the other girl from moving any more forward. The man, or thing, before them was identical to the Doctor in every detail, except for the metal swirls lining his face, outlining his jaw. "Funny thing, that."

"How are you here?" Clara snarled.

"It is very simple really," the man cackled happily, "We needed a better Cyber-Planner, and here I am!" his voice was the same as the Doctor's, but it rose in a sickening screech, his teeth looked suddenly metallic, as did almost everything about him. His skin was pale silver, his fingers rough and clumsy.

"Why do you look like the Doctor?" Amy demanded.

"The Cyber-Planner before me sent me the data. Did you really think there was only one Miss Clara?"

"You can't be here." Clara repeated, "because we blew you up."

"Don't you listen? I am simply a copy of the other Cyber-planner, and all the information we needed to require was in your head!" he gestured towards the table, "Draw up a chair why don't you?"

"What do you mean?" Clara's voice was shaky, and she didn't move. "What do you mean in my head?"

"Well, and mine of course." A man said, and they both whirled around. "Do you like my machine? I picked him out of your memories." To further prove his words, the Cyber-planner sparked, and collapsed on the table, steam rising from it's corpse. "A few faults, but…" he trailed off.

"Who are you?" Amy sounded sick of all the games and riddles being woven around their heads, and Clara was with her.

"An old… friend of the Doctors." The man grinned, and he showed all his teeth as he did so, making it not very lovely at all. "You may call me The Master."

"The Master? That's worse than the Doctor." Amy scoffed. The Master approached her, before shoving her back into the table, she hit it with a small shriek of pain.

"I wouldn't test me, sweetheart." The man snarled. "Of course," he said, changing composures in a half a second, his eyebrows raising in a innocent manor. "The Doctor hasn't seen me in a long, long time. Jack-" he raised his voice, "Please help me in here."

Clara recognized Jack, from the hotel in the simulation, but only barely as he walked in. His face was covered in bruises and scrapes, and he looked shaky as he walked over to where they stood. "What can I help you with Sir?" his American voice sounded forced.

"Help me explain to Miss Clara, her new medical condition."

"What condition?"

"You… may have two hearts." There was sympathy in Jack's voice, but he looked like all the energy had been drained from him.

"What do you mean?" She asked, shaking her head firmly, stumbling back, but her hands were going to her chest. _Two beats._ "No. No." she shook her head firmly.

"Oh yes." The Master grinned, "We're the last of our kind, now that Doctor is locked in sleep."

Clara could only gape.


	16. Seven Devils

**_I REALLY REALLY HOPE THIS MAKES SENSE. You see, I'm rubbish at coming up with conclusions, and this one might be a little rushed, and confusing, but it should make sense in the end._**

**_*Warning for violence*_**

_Seven Devils_

She was almost getting used to seeing his ugly, hideous face every day. Almost. She generally tried to avoid his eyes, because it was his eyes that gave away exactly what he was thinking, and she generally didn't want to see that. She didn't want to see the horrors within their carefully controlled boundaries.

It had been a year. A year of torture. A year of sitting pretty in tight dresses, with the council of the mouse people (who had apparently funded the Master's attack on the Doctor) that just barely masked the bruises that never quite left her or Amy's bodies, of pretending to smile, when afterwards she knew that he would beat them bloody. She hoped with all her being that he wouldn't think of doing anything other than hitting them, that his more _manly _desires wouldn't show. She already felt bled dry of all hope.

She could feel herself slowly slipping away, deep into the recesses of her mind, as each day passed without the Doctor. She could see similar beginnings in Amy's eyes, and they both knew that he was truly gone, and so was Rory. They weren't going to save them now.

He had let slip at some point that even if the Doctor saw him, he wouldn't know who he was. He'd changed faces, he explained, and he always said that this form was rather fond of hitting before he smacked her again.

She used to try and fight back. So did Amy. But it got to the point where every single ounce of adrenaline and the things that kept her going was sucked out of her.

Jack was now staying with them permanently, and he was the closest thing to the Doctor she had. He kept them from dying. He kept them living. She was at dinner, trying to eat.

She played with her food, raising the smallest bites to her mouth. She still hadn't accepted that she was a Time Lord or Lady or whatever you called it, even though the pounding of her hearts tells her otherwise. She doesn't want to believe it because the Doctor isn't here, he's not the one telling her the information.

"Oh, Clara, you don't seem to be enjoying your food." The Master said, and she raised her dull eyes. "Eat up. We don't want you going hungry." She took larger bites, and soon she was done with the whole plate. "For that, you get a reward." He stood up, and walked over in front of her.

She immediately flinched back, but he simply laughed. He gestured towards the guards, and they seized ahold of each of her arms, dragging her from the room. Amy didn't even glance up, but Clara could see the tears falling down her friend's face and knew that she had finally given up trying to save them. Just like Clara had weeks ago. He would be so happy that he'd broken both of them.

"Walk with me." He said, and looking into his yellowish brown eyes she nodded, the guards released her and she took careful, measured steps next to him, her eyes trained on the floor. "Clara, do you know what I want?" She remained silent, her lips pressed together in a thin line. His fingers came up and gripped her chin, forcing her to look at him. "I said, do you know what I want?"

"No." she said in the same dull tone she had perfected over the last year. "I do not, Master."

"My, Master. My Master." He corrected her idly,his eyes focused on the white wall behind her. "All I want Clara, is for us to be friends." She didn't respond, but she could only imagine that her cheeks flushed with the audacity of that comment. _Friends?_ "Would you like that Clara?"

"Yes, My Master." She lied, and his fist came out of nowhere and cracked her across the face. She didn't release a sound of pain, no, she was to good for that.

"Don't lie." He spat, and she stumbled back, silent tears running down her face. "Take her back to her cell!" he shouted, and the guards came back, and dragged her away. They threw her onto the floor, and she collapsed, letting the sobs roll over her body.

They were so alone. So alone.

_Doctor? _She silently begged, _Where are you?_

* * *

><p>Sometimes he could take it. Sometimes the pain of losing her was bearable, and sometimes it hurt so much that every single breath he took sent a new wave of unbearable pain ripping through his chest.<p>

He saw it in Rory's eyes every day. He felt like his own emotions were reflected in the other mans eyes, and he hated himself for it. Rory had never lost Amy like that before; they had always found each other in the end. And it was his fault that Amy was dead now. Both of them still clung to the hopes that when they figured out how to wake everyone up, both women would be alive and well.

But as the days passed, and each night they said goodnight knowing that they didn't make any progress that day, the hope began to sink deep into his chest. He had moved in with Rory the day he revealed to the Doctor that he remembered. They woke up. Rory went to his normal boring job, while the Doctor did a bunch of boring calculations, Rory would come home to the Doctor screaming and throwing his said calculations at the wall.

This time though, he decided to take the Sherlock approach to things. Without a gun of course, because he didn't approve of such things. Still, he was sprawled on the sofa, in his robes still, throwing his bow ties at a painted smiley face on the wall, which, he supposed, bow ties were somewhat like bullets, they were more cool.

"What the hell are you doing?" Rory sighed, as he walked into the living room. The Doctor in response threw a bow tie at his face.

"I'm busy doing…. IMPORTANT THINGS!" he shouted, and resumed his target practice.

"Doctor…" Rory trailed off, and he walked into the kitchen, apparently done dealing with this time lord today.

"It's impossible. Just like she was impossible! Just like everything IN THIS DAMN WORLD IS IMPOSSIBLE!" he yelled the last few words after Rory.

"Look, if you really want to figure it out," Rory walked back into the room, a glass of wine in his hand. "Read the letter." Rory had been saying the same thing every day for the past year. Read Clara's letter. Read her last words, because even though it may help you, it's still her last words and it's her goodbye.

"No." he says firmly. "I can figure this out on your own."

"No, you can't." Rory argued, and he stood in front of the Doctor now, his hands on his hips. He looked so Amyish that the Doctor was almost afraid of him. Almost. "Look at you. You're throwing bowties at a _wall._"

"I'm calculating the gravity force in this world!" he chucked the next one at Rory's head. "I can't expect your dull human brain to understand!"

"Understand this." Rory stepped in front of him, and the Doctor could see what he had clutched in his grip, an envelope with her handwriting on it. He immediately jumped off the couch and tried to take it from him, but Rory held it out of his reach. "If you don't read it, I will."

"Fine." The Doctor gave in, his shoulders slumping, "Just give it to me." Rory handed it to him, but based on Rory's watchful eyes, he knew the other man would grab it back at first suspicion of foul play. The Doctor knew it was over due though, and carefully, he pried open the letter.

_Doctor, or Elijah, or whoever reads this. _

_ I'm going to die. _

His breath caught in his throat, and he cleared it, and he almost read it aloud, but his voice failed him, and he read it in silence, having every intention of Rory reading it when he was done.

_Now to anyone but the Doctor reading this, I probably sound as crazy as a box of cats, but if it is you, if it is the Doctor, I need you to listen. You woke up. I don't know if you remember it, but you woke up, for just a moment, and saved me. You woke up when Elijah Smith died, and you tried to get me to see you, but I couldn't. Please. Please save me, wherever I am, because I don't want to be alone._

He felt like he was collasping with every written word. After a year, a long, hellish year, Rory was making him read this now? He felt like he was being ripped to pieces. Maybe that was why he was reading it now, because he had finally sank to the bottom of the barrel, and there was no return without guidance. Her words were almost like a comforting hand, pulling him out of the darkness.

_Hell, I know this sounds crazy, but I love you. Remember that okay? Remember me._

_ Clara. _

She'd written it in a hurry, that much was clear from her hastily scribbled words, and the simply the way that she sounded frantic. He was uncomprehending for a moment, his eyes staring unknowingly at the small piece of paper clutched in his fingers, the words, _I love you _cartwheeling around in his brain. He could feel Rory's eyes on his back and knew he should say something, but couldn't find the words.

Then it hit him.

"OH YES!" he yelled, jumping up and down and pumping his fist in the air. "CLARA OSWALD YOU SAVED ME AGAIN!" he yelled, and Rory's face spread into a smile.

"So what do we have to do?" Rory asked eagerly.

"It's so very simple," the Doctor murmers, "I can't believe I didn't see it before. We have to die." Rory went pale.

"What do you mean die?" he asked in alarm. The Doctor tossed the letter at him. Rory quickly scanned the words. He looked up at the Doctor in confusion, obviously not getting the very obvious fine print in front of him.

"We die, we wake up." He said, taking the letter from him and whapping him on the head. "Simple Rory! Simple!" Rory looked at him in alarm.

"So you're proposing we kill ourselves." He summed up. The Doctor nodded. Rory backed away from him, a look of fear on his face. "Okay, Doctor, are you sure you're feeling okay?"

"I'm feeling fine!" he exclaimed, clapping his hands. "Now, now Mr. Pond, now is not the time to start doubting me."

"Now is exactly the time to start doubting you." Rory said, and the Doctor frowned.

"Fine, if you don't want to help-"

"Of course I don't want to help you!" Rory yelled, "Look, I know you want her back. I want Amy back too. But this isn't the time to be making stupid decisions."

"It's not stupid, it's calculated." The Doctor snapped. "Look, whoever has them now is not going to keep them alive for much longer."

"How do we know that they're even alive in the first place?!"

"We don't." the Doctor got close to Rory, his nose nearly touching the other mans. "But it's worth a shot. If you don't want to help me, so be it." He turns, grabbing his coat and walking out of the door. Only then does he realize that he's grabbed the coat Clara was wearing when she died. It wasn't hanging on the doorknob before, in fact he's positive he threw it away long ago. He takes it as a sign, a sign that he's doing the right thing.

"Doctor, I can't let you do this." Rory says.

"You don't have a choice." The Doctor says, and before Rory can stop him, he's crashing through the window of their apartment, to the concrete five floors below them.

* * *

><p>She stares at her shaking fingers, instead of looking at Amy when the other girl is thrown into the room. She feels cold, and alone.<p>

"Did you hear?" the guards whisper, and her head straightens up. The guards never talk, just stand their like statues, occasionally laughing when she or Amy shrieks in their sleep. "The Doctor has escaped from the sleep prison." Amy and Clara look at each other then, and Amy grins, the first time in a long time. Clara moves over and kneels beside Jack, slowly nudging him awake.

"He's coming." She whispers in his ear. "He's going to save us."


	17. Endings

**Well here we are.**

** You and me.**

** On the last chapter.**

**Goodness, it feels rather bittersweet. I really hope you enjoy the ending, because I was a bit on the fence about how it should end, me being terrible at conclusions and all. **

** But it's done. Phew. That's a load off my shoulders.**

**Also, pretty soon, (like in the next week or so) I will be uploading a Whouffle!Spy AU which I think will be fun, so make sure to check it out.**

** Okay, Sage out.**

* * *

><p>He woke up. It was like someone had just dumped a bucket of water over him, and he was disoriented at first, confused as to where he was. He swiped at his face, dislodging the electrodes stuck to his skin, and sat up, the white hospital blankets covering him pooling to the floor. He was in a hospital gown, and his feet were bare as he set them on the ground.<p>

As soon as he got a good look around at the dark room, he knew something was terribly wrong. Truthfully, he'd known as soon as he woke to the stench of blood, that this wasn't going to be easy. The lights were out, and he had to squint in the darkness. Their beds were the only furniture still standing, and there was only four beds left. Him, Rose, Rory, and the other Doctor. He only wondered for a moment why all the others weren't there, before realizing that they were probably just images, ghosts, feeble representations of their imaginations.

He avoids the broken glass as he walks, and finds the first body in the doorway. It's a young woman, her black hair contrasting oddly with the white floors. Her mouth is open in a silent scream, and her eyes are blank. _Clara. _He automatically thinks, and sprints off.

He runs into the TARDIS. Even so, it makes him crash back to the floor, although it doesn't do any real damage to his head. "Sexy!" he cries in joy, tugging on the handles. She must have flown away to escape the damage, and come back for him. He quickly enters, and breaths in relief to see that the counsel is undamaged. Now, time for sensible clothes.

With a bowtie securely around his neck and a fez on his head he returns to the room where he was sleeping, intent on waking the others up. As soon as he come in however, Rory awakes with a gasp, his eyes flying open.

"Mr. Pond!" the Doctor exclaims, throwing his arms around the other man in a friendly hug. Rory seems just as confused as he was at first, but the Doctor quickly moves on to Rose, peering at the machines by her head. He quickly figures out how to wake her up safely, it's not hard, there's a large button stating that purpose. She wakes, and he moves on to his clone.

"What the hell?" Rose asks, but he waves his hand at her.

"No time to explain. Short version: I'm the Doctor, just different face. Come along!" he gestures impatiently at her, and the other Doctor glares. "Oh shut up duplicate me." He rolls his eyes, "We have no time to lose."

"Are Amy and Clara here?" Rory asks, and the Doctor knows he's seen the dead woman too. He doesn't answer the other man, just gestures. "Down here." He says, "I have the TARDIS. Also," he whirled around, looking Rose in the eye. "My first word to you was run Rose Tyler, if you're still doubting me."

* * *

><p>Amy's face felt odd. Perhaps it was because she was smiling, she realized, her lips stretched into the first true smile since she had been sitting underneath the sun, the Doctor's back firmly pressed against hers and Rory's elbow on her knee. Her muscles felt used up, but she was smiling, and it felt good.<p>

They didn't speak, they didn't want to attract attentions to themselves. The Master would already be in a bad enough mood. Still, they looked at themselves with hope in their hearts for the first time in a long time, and it felt nice.

"Oswald girl!" He snarled, and he came into their small room, dragging Clara to her feet by her arm. "If you know what's good for you, you'll come quietly."

"No." she said, firmly. "Never again." His fist cracked across her already swollen shut eye, but she just smiled. "He's coming, and when he does, you'll pay." His hand went around her throat then, and he squeezed cutting off her air. She struggled for a moment, before the sound echoed through out the entire ship.

The sound of the TARDIS.

"I was able to put a lock on Clara and Amy!" the Doctor joyously cries, peering at the screen.

"We were." His tenth duplicate automatically corrects, and the Doctor rolls his eyes.

"Alright, we were. They're on a space ship. They're alive!" he grins at Rory. "We can get to them!" he moves around pressing buttons and flipping switches. "And," he murmured to the silent air, "Whoever took them is going to pay."

"Screw you." Amy said, and slammed her fist into the Master's face. He howled in pain, and the ginger woman pulled Clara to her feet, she was still gasping for air.

"No!" the Master howled, and he seized Clara, pulling her backwards, a knife pressed against her throat. "You do that again, human filth, and she dies!" he began to pull Clara backwards out the door. She could only pant, her mind still recovering from the brief suffocation.

* * *

><p>"Doctor, come on!" Rory pulled at his sleeve.<p>

"One moment." The Doctor smoothed down his hair, and adjusted his bow tie. "Final checks."

"Since when?" Rory calls and he's already out the door.

* * *

><p>Amy is stunned speechless, and she starts to go after the Master and Clara, but Jack grabs her arm and holds her back. "No," he tells her, "if you go after her he's gonna shoot her."<p>

"Amy?" Rory. She turns around, and he's standing there, stupid face and all. She knows she looks like a right mess, the Master beat them on the face last night, and it's purple and swelling in places. Still, her mouth stretches into a grin and she flings herself at him, wrapping her arms around him and burying her face in his shoulder.

"Rory!" she cries, and she's sobbing, because it's been so horrible without him, and now he's here, and she can't hold in the sobs resounding throughout her whole body. "You found me."

"I will always find you." He murmurs into her hair.

* * *

><p>She kicks him in the crotch. It isn't hard, all she has to do is lift her leg backwards and aim. She does it as hard as she can and he howls in pain, releasing her, but slashing her arm open. The blood flows down, and she grips the knife, raising it over her head, prepared to end this.<p>

She hesitates. It's all he needs, he kicks at her legs and she goes down, hitting the floor with a thud. She tries to recover but it's to late, he's on top of her in a second, pressing the blade of the knife he holds to her throat. She shakes slightly, in fear of what's risen in his eyes.

"You've been a very bad girl." He whispers, "I think it's time I punish you properly.."

"Go to hell." She snarls, and throws him off of her with a strength she didn't know she had. He's back on top of her before she can run however, and the knife is digging into her throat as his arms caress her.

"Leave me alone!"she shrieks feebly, the strength leaving her.

"Never. You're my Impossible Girl," he snarls, "And I will always find you." Someone else rips him from her, and she screams, cowering down, folding in on herself. Someone else is here to hurt her.

"Clara!" his voice says, "It's me Clara. Come on, come on, you have to believe me." She can faintly see his outline as he crouches in front of her. "It's me."

"Doc…tor?" she whispers, raising her eyes, and he's there, wrapping his arms around her tightly. She's sobbing all the sudden, crying her eyes out into his shoulder, her face buried deeply in the tweed. She can't stop shaking, and he's there, he's always been there.

He detaches himself from her, picking up the knife and holding it to the Master's head. "I should have killed you." He says, "A long time ago."

"No!" She's surprised to hear herself cry out, she was just about to do the same thing. "We can't be like him." She says, picking herself up off the floor, and moving over to the Doctor, placing her palm against his arm. "It's over." The Doctor sighs, letting the knife slide to the floor and turning back to Clara, he pulls her into his arms once more.

"It's never over." The Master practically whimpers. Clara looks over, and sees that Jack is literally sitting on top of him, his gun pressed to the Master's temple. Where he got a gun she doesn't even know, but doesn't question it.

"Really mate?" Rory asks him, and she sees with a smile that his arm is around Amy.

"You might as well tell him already." The Master laughs, and Jack knocks him out with the hilt of his gun. The Doctor frowns slightly in disapproval, but looks down at Clara.

"What does he mean?" he asks her. In response, she lifts his hands and places them over her hearts.

* * *

><p><strong> Two years later<strong>

"Emergency! You're my boyfriend." She says as soon as he picks up the phone. He sighs.

"Clara, it's a little late for that. We're already married." He explains it to her slowly, as if she doesn't know that already.

"I know that." She sighs, "But my Dad doesn't. Nor does any of my family. I need you to come to Christmas dinner and be my boyfriend for one night."

"Can I be your husband afterwards?"

"Sure whatever." She flaps her hands. "Where are you anyways? You were supposed to come back for dinner last night after taking Amy out for lunch."

"A bit of a run it with a Dalek," he explains, and it's her turn to sigh.

"Why am I not surprised?" She asks the air. "Be over in five?"

"Five, or fifteen, or five hours." He says, and she frowns.

"That better be a joke!" the doorbell rings. "My Dad's here, and he's expecting a boyfriend."

"Or a husband."

"Shut up!"

She darts to the door, flinging it open and greeting her Dad with a hug. He doesn't understand what's changed about her, she knows that. The Doctor was able to drop her off right where they left off, the same Wednesday, and even though she was at least two years older and something alien, the rest of the world hadn't changed.

"Is Gran coming?" she asks him, straightening up, and hanging up his coat on the hooks by the door.

"Yes, and Linda." She pulls a face at the sound of her annoying Aunt's name, but smiles all the same.

"I'm having a couple friends join us as well," she amends, "and my boyfriend." She does one last scan over that she didn't leave any pictures of her and the Doctor with George Washington out, or even worse, some of there wedding pictures.

It was nothing personal that she didn't invite her Dad to her own wedding, it was more the fact that she and the Doctor both wanted a Gallifrey ceremony to begin with, than maybe a human one later. Only Amy, Rory, Jack, and Rose and her husband (who had taken up jobs with Torchwood in London) had attended, and the honeymoon did last for a month. Well, a day Earth time. But what else is a time machine for?

The minute her Dad is seated, the bell rings, and Linda and her Gran arrive. Damn, Clara was hoping Amy or the Doctor would get here before Linda. She falsely smiles at her aunt, who comments on how Clara's put on a couple pounds, and her Gran gives her a cushy hug.

She's frantically trying to finish cooking, when she hears it. The TARDIS is materializing, and she grins, darting out of her apartment quickly with the promise of being back in a minute.

"Doctor! I so need you-"

"CLARA!" he shouts, extending his arms. She shrieks.

"WHY ARE YOU NAKED?!" she looks angry, and crosses her arms. The Doctor automatically looks afraid, shrinking back from her gaze.

"Because I needed to go to church." He mumbles.

"Well not anymore. We can do that later. Put on some clothes." She demands, not even questioning the fact that her husband is going naked to church. He instead flips some switches, and clothes appear on his body.

"Thank you." She says, and takes his hand. "Come and meet my family."

* * *

><p>"Here is the Doctor, my boyfriend!" she happily exclaims, pushing him in front of her. Her Dad looks at her in shock, than averts his eyes, although she can't imagine why.<p>

"Actually, I'm her husband." The Doctor says, than covers his mouth. "Damn, Clara, I got some truth serum in me. I think. That Dalek was very angry. Reminds me of Oswin. Also, did you know Clara's pregnant?!" Clara went white, the Doctor looked ashamed, but now that his mouth was open he couldn't stop. "Yep, she told me last week which is why she didn't come with me and Amy yesterday. Also, she's the only one who can see my clothes! She's the only one who doesn't need to see my clothes."

"No. One. Else. Can. See. Your. Clothes." Clara repeats, closing her eyes.

"Nope. And you're my alien wife so you don't need to see my clothes. By the way, Clara's a alien now! When I pulled her out of my time stream a little extra came back!"

"Shut up!" Clara said quickly, her face turning red as all her relatives turned to her in shock.

_This is what I get for marrying a bow tie wearing idiot. _She thinks to herself. But, it was only the beginning.

* * *

><p>Also, if you would like any one shots centered around this story, just let me know:)<p> 


	18. Authors Note:)

A lot of people have requested a sequel/one shots for this story, and I love that everyone liked it enough to want some.

I've started the sequel/mini adventure thing, which I think everyone should like, and will tie up anymore loose ends left.

However, this authors note isn't exactly about this story... More about my other one, which I feel is some of my best writing ever, and I would love if more of you read it.

It's called Invasions of the Mind.

Thank you!

Any one shot prompts for a Sleepy Town Called TARDIS should be left in the reviews. Thanks you!

Here's a preview of the sequel.

The Master smirked through the bars of his cage. They thought they could keep him contained for much longer. Contained in this stupid ship, on this stupid world, but they were wrong. Dead wrong.

The Doctor was frustrated, he could see that. His new form didn't get red when he was angry, but his lips grew into a monstrous shape and words came out of his mouth, words that the Master was oblivious to. He just sat there smiling, day after day, until the Doctor hardly visited at all and the only disturbances he had was the slight rocking of the TARDIS when they decided to go somewhere new.

This time though, the Doctor had come in already angry, and he was shouting rather loudly, although the Master couldn't quite distinguish the words. This time though, someone did come. The girl from before… Clara. The Time Lord. She was so pretty he thought, as she popped her head around the corner, her brown curls swinging. She looked like a china doll who might just break if he pressed hard enough. She didn't break though, he'd learned that the hard way.

She was angry, just like the Doctor, but she seemed angry at him, as she swung around the corner. He was automatically surprised at the sight of her swollen stomach, but then smiled cruely.

Oh, it would all topple down soon.

* * *

><p>and heres a preview of Invasions of the Mind:<p>

When she woke up, she wasn't alone. It was strange, she thought, because she should be dead. She could remember the flashes of the night before, and immediately wanted to scream his name. She fought against her bonds at once, but they were made of a tougher rope than she had been trained to rip through. "Where am I?" the words left her before she could stop them, her brain muddled, and she couldn't stop the panicked words that left her mouth in a scream, "WHERE AM I? PLEASE SOMEONE TELL ME WHERE I AM!"

"No one can hear you." A cold, dead of emotion voice said to her, and Walter Simeon came into view , his face flat and expressionless.

"What do you want with me?" she spat, but they seem to have drugged her, and the words came out as a feeble whisper.

"I want you to watch." He walked over, and on her left, did something, allowing a square of light to enter the dark room. She saw that she was actually in a van, the windows tinted so no one could see into them. She was strapped to a black dentists chair, a tray next to her filled with electrodes and various torture instruments. Even though she didn't want to, she still followed Simeon's line of sight, and looked out the window.

"DOCTOR!" she screamed. He was standing there, feet from the truck, his eyes fixed on a point in the horizon. His shoulders were shaking. "DOCTOR PLEASE! HELP ME!" she screamed, and she struggled even harder, trying to get to him. He was right there.

"Shall we add some sound?" Simeon asked, and pressed another button. Voices immediately filled the truck, being projected from outside. She could hear his muffled sobs now, and it hurt. Why was he crying?

_"and now a word from 'er husband."_ Jenny's voice echoed, and Clara's eyes widened. Who's husband? What was going on?

The Doctor stepped up. She could see now that they were in the mountains, by her favorite hike. She had loved that place. Why was he speaking? She was right here, she was his wife, and she was alive. Why wasn't he trying to find her?

_"Clara was,"_ his eyes were red, and his voice sounded clogged. Why was he crying? She was right here. She was alive. "_The brightest, happiest person there ever was. She was my savior, my best friend." _

"You're dead." Simeon answered her rising hysteria. "At least, he thinks you are. Everyone does." He smiled cruelly. "That should make it that much easier for you to do what I ask."

"Go to hell." She spat. He shot her another devilish grin, stepping up to where the tray of tools lay. He picked up a wire, and stuck it to her temples, and only then did Clara realize what he was doing.

"No," she sobbed, "DOCTOR! HELP ME! PLEASE! SOMEONE!" Simeon stuck more wires all over her body, even in her mouth. She was still screaming.

_"She was the bravest fighter-" _

"I AM NOT A DALEK!" she screamed, screwing her eyes shut as Simeon turned on the machine, "I AM HUMAN!" a hot pain flared in her body, and she writhed, hands trying to twist free of her bonds so she could free herself.

_"And I loved her so very much." _

"I am human," she gasped, but she could feel it changing her, changing her thoughts, changing who she was, "I am not a human, I am not a dalek, I am human! I am not Dalek! I am not a Dalek, I am not a human, I AM A DALEK!" she finally screamed, and then straightened up. Simeon, seeing that his work was done, freed her from the bonds and electrodes.

_"She will live on, in our hearts forever." _


End file.
